KYIV (AFP) - The Ukrainian army said on Wednesday (Aug 10) it struck and made unusable a bridge in the Russian-held Kherson region, after hitting another key bridge in the same area a few days before.

A "precise and efficient strike" against a bridge near the Kakhovka hydropower plant made it "unusable", the Operational Command "South" said on Facebook.

Another bridge in the same region, the Antonivskiy bridge - deemed to be strategic for Russian military logistics - was hit a few days earlier, the Ukrainian armed forces had reported on Monday.

The Antonivskiy bridge, crossing the Dnipro river in the suburbs of Kherson - a city occupied by Russia - had already been hit and partially destroyed on July 27.

The Russian army was forced to install a pontoon to cross the water.

Kherson, the capital of the region, is located only a few kilometres away from the front lines.

The wider region - also called Kherson - is essential to Ukrainian agriculture.

It is also strategic because it neighbours Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.

Ukrainian forces say they have been leading a slow counter-offensive in the south of the country for a few weeks.

Kyiv says it has retaken dozens of villages from Russian troops.