The Black Sea – the war is escalating
Overnight alone, Ukraine claims to have attacked around 20 Russian oil and gas vessels in the Black Sea. The new strategy involves extending an intensive offensive from the Sea of Azov.
´ The first round of the naval battle is over. Now we’re taking the Black Sea,´ explains Ukraine’s drone commander Robert “Majdar” Brovdi, according to Bloomberg.
In recent weeks, Ukraine claims to have taken out around 100 tankers transporting fossil fuels to Russia. Brovdi, head of Ukraine’s drone force, the USF, has stated that strikes are being carried out in the Sea of Azov every 112 minutes. And according to the latest reports, the USF is now extending this frenetic offensive to the Black Sea.
The Sea of Azov is a bay of the Black Sea, which in turn leads out to the world’s oceans. However, the only route for Russian ships to exit is the Kerch Strait, between Russia and Russian-occupied Crimea.
The attacks therefore serve a dual purpose for Ukraine. On the one hand, they hamper Russia’s ability to export oil and gas, which deals a severe blow to both the economy and Russian public opinion. Secondly, they are spreading fear in and around Crimea, which has been Russian President Vladimir Putin’s crown jewel amongst the territories conquered during the war. Previous attacks on the land routes to Crimea have made them so dangerous that many Russians have cancelled plans to holiday there this summer. And now, the supply routes by sea are also being targeted. But Russia is responding in kind. In recent days, it has repeatedly attacked the deep-water ports in the Odessa region, which are vital to Ukraine’s foreign trade. On Wednesday morning, Ukraine confirmed that several civilians had been killed and injured in the attacks.
