Kerch Strait in the context of "Greeks in pre-Roman Crimea"

The Crimean Bridge (Russian: Крымский мост, romanized: Krymskiy most, IPA: [ˈkrɨmskʲij most]; Ukrainian: Кримський міст, romanized: Krymskyi mist), also called Kerch Strait Bridge or Kerch Bridge, is a pair of parallel bridges, one for a four-lane road and one for a double-track railway, spanning the Kerch Strait between the Taman Peninsula of Krasnodar Krai in Russia and the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea. Built by the Russian Federation after its annexation of Crimea at the start of 2014, the bridge cost ₽227.92 billion (US$3.7 billion) and has a length of 19 km (12 mi), making it the longest bridge in Europe and the longest bridge ever constructed by Russia.

In January 2015 the multibillion-dollar construction contract for the bridge was awarded to Arkady Rotenberg's Stroygazmontazh. Construction beganin February 2016. The road bridge was inaugurated by Russian president Vladimir Putin on 15 May 2018. It opened for cars on 16 May and for trucks on 1 October. The rail bridge was inaugurated on 23 December 2019 and the first scheduled passenger train crossed the bridge two days later. The bridge was opened for freight trains on 30 June 2020. A record amount of traffic, totalling 36,393 cars, was recorded on 15 August 2020.

Krasnodar Krai (Russian: Краснода́рский край, romanized: Krasnodarskiy kray, [krəsnɐˈdarskʲɪj kraj]) is a federal subject of Russia (a krai), located in the North Caucasus region in Southern Russia and is administratively a part of the Southern Federal District. Its administrative center is the city of Krasnodar. The third most populous federal subject in Russia, it had a population of 5,838,273 as of the 2021 Census.

Krasnodar Krai is formally and informally referred to as Kuban (Russian: Кубань), a term denoting the historical region of Kuban situated between the Sea of Azov and the Kuban River which is predominantly within the krai. It is bordered by Rostov Oblast to the north, Stavropol Krai to the east, Karachay-Cherkessia to the south-east. Adygea is an enclave entirely within the krai. Krasnodar Krai shares an international border with Georgia and borders annexed Crimea to the west, across the Kerch Strait.

The Taman Peninsula (Russian: Таманский полуостров, IPA: [tɐˈmanskʲɪj pəlʊˈostrəf]) is a peninsula in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, which borders the Sea of Azov to the north, the Kerch Strait to the west and the Black Sea to the south.

The Russia–Ukraine border is the de jure international boundary between Russia and Ukraine. Over land, the border spans five Russian oblasts and five Ukrainian oblasts. Due to the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in early 2014, the de facto border between Russia and Ukraine is different from the legal border recognized by the United Nations. As of 2024, Russia is militarily occupying a significant portion of Ukraine, and Ukraine is militarily occupying a very small portion of Russia.

According to a 2016 statement by Viktor Nazarenko, the head of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, the Ukrainian government did not have control over 409.3 kilometres (254.3 mi) of the international border with Russia. This stretch of land was formerly controlled by pro-Russian separatists under the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic (see War in Donbas), both of which were annexed by Russia in September 2022, seven months after the beginning of the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine has also not had authority over the Kerch Strait since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea; the Ukrainian administration was pushed out of Crimea and Russian checkpoints were set up at the boundary with Kherson Oblast.

Yeni-Kale (Ukrainian: Єні-Кале; Russian: Еникале; Turkish: Yenikale; Crimean Tatar: Yeñi Qale, also spelled as Yenikale and Eni-Kale and Yeni-Kaleh or Yéni-Kaleb) is a fortress located on the shore of Kerch Strait in the city of Kerch.

45°2′N 38°58′E / 45.033°N 38.967°E / 45.033; 38.967

Kuban (Russian and Ukrainian: Кубань; Adyghe: Пшызэ; Kabardian: Псыжь; Karachay-Balkar: Къобан; Nogai: Кобан; Abaza: Къвбина) is a historical and geographical region of southern Russia surrounding the Kuban River, on the Black Sea between the Don Steppe, the Volga Delta and separated from the Crimean Peninsula to the west by the Kerch Strait. Krasnodar Krai is often referred to as Kuban, both officially and unofficially, although the term is not exclusive to the krai and also accommodates the republics of Adygea, Karachay-Cherkessia, and parts of Stavropol Krai.

The Maeotian Swamp or Maeotian Marshes (Ancient Greek: ἡ Μαιῶτις λίμνη, hē Maiōtis límnē, literally Maeotian Lake; Latin: Palus Maeotis) was a name applied in antiquity variously to the swamps at the mouth of the Tanais River in Scythia (the modern Don in southern Russia) and to the entire Sea of Azov which it forms there. The sea was also known as the Maeotian Lake (Ancient Greek: ἡ Μαιῶτις λίμνη, hē Maiōtis límnē; Latin: Lacus Maeotis) among other names. The people who lived around the sea were known as the Maeotians, although it remains unclear which was named for which. The Kerch Strait joins the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.

The Ixomates were a tribe of the Maeotes. To the south of the Maeotes, east of the Crimea were the Sindes, their lands known as Scythia Sindica.