RE route A87
If the Russians had closed route A87, that implies that the route over the Ukrainian was dead headed, was it not? It begs the question, who is responsible to check continuity of routes?
The other question is, this could imply the Russians new there was going to be an excalation in capabilitys by the rebels. As such the route closure was a method of ensuring no civilian traffic, with out letting on what they know?