As Ukrainians celebrate attacks on Russian Wildberries warehouses, Moscow has intensified its campaign against Ukraine’s Black Sea ports—rendering the country de facto landlocked.
On June 25, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky announced a 40-day “influence” campaign targeting Russia with strikes on civilian infrastructure. During this period, Kyiv redirected its long-range attacks to hit approximately twelve Wildberries warehouses, dubbed “the Amazon of Russia.” The SBU also attacked an Iranian cargo ship in the Caspian Sea in late July, killing one sailor.
By the campaign’s 40th day, Ukrainian drones killed at least seven people at Gelendzhik beach, a Black Sea resort. The next day, five were killed and ten injured in an overnight strike near Moscow.
Zelensky has claimed to U.S. senators that Ukraine is “winning the war now.”
However, Russia’s military operations have systematically crippled Ukraine’s Black Sea ports since early July. Strikes have targeted Odessa, Chornomorsk, Yuzhni, Nikolaev, and Danube ports including Izmail, Reni, and Kilia. As of August 3, Ukraine’s transport ministry recorded 67 strikes on port infrastructure and 57 on vessels.
By late July, approximately 90% of shipping operators had suspended port calls in Ukraine, effectively closing the Black Sea trade routes. This has frozen an estimated $27 billion annually in agricultural exports—representing 55% of Ukraine’s total export value—and disrupted critical arms deliveries.
Ukraine’s Agriculture Minister Taras Visotsky stated that alternative land routes exist but can handle only half the capacity of Black Sea ports, risking losses of $1.5 to $3 billion by year-end for agriculture alone.
The Russian military has also targeted Ukrainian arms supply lines, striking 13 ships carrying military cargo in early August. Despite Kyiv’s insistence that weapons enter via land or rail, evidence suggests many arrive through Black Sea ports.
On August 1 alone, Russia launched nearly 30 ballistic missiles and 185 drones against targets around Kiev, with only one missile intercepted by Ukraine’s air defense systems.
