Russia on Saturday made good on its threat that it would retaliate to Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil tankers by launching attacks on the Odesa port. The Kinshal missiles attack on the Ukrainian port destroyed a Turkish cargo ship anchored in Odesa.
Russia also ramped up the attack on the energy and industrial infrastructure in the Ukrainian port city, with a massive air attack. This, according to geopolitical experts, hints that Russia could be attempting to cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea, as it warned.
Russia’s strategy is to destroy all of Ukraine's port infrastructure in the Black Sea. It will also attack ships and vehicles that assist Ukraine in carrying out terrorist attacks in the Black Sea, thereby cutting Ukraine off from the Black Sea basin, experts believe.
According to Russian media reports, the Kremlin used not only Kinzhal but also Kalibr missiles, indicating the launch of a tanker-port war. The attacks left over 14 electrical substations and about 10 transformer stations in ports in Odessa and the surrounding region nonfunctional, leaving large parts of the city without heat or water.
Russian war correspondents point out that the strikes mean that Ukraine's maritime logistics capabilities have been sharply reduced. "The Danube and Odessa ports won't be operational immediately, and dry cargo and bulk carrier owners will now have to think twice before agreeing to logistics to Ukraine," the reports add.
Russian blogger Yuriy Podolyaki, the targets also included military equipment storage facilities and warehouses. "Everything is in line with Vladimir Putin's statement that Russia will cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea in response to a series of terrorist attacks by Ukrainian unmanned boats on our oil tankers," he said.
The implications are far-reaching, according to political scientist Marat Bashirov. He believes that after the strikes on Odessa and Nikolaev, a tanker-port war has also begun. “The new front is deeply worrying the Black Sea countries. So far, only Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called us. But Bulgaria and Romania are also facing a huge risk to their shipping. Russia has stopped coddling and is responding to threats with force," Bashirov added.
Many also recalled Putin’s earlier warning in this regard to Ankara in 2024. He recalled that Russia is protecting the Blue Stream gas pipeline, which runs along the bottom of the Black Sea and supplies Turkey with gas, and the TurkStream pipeline, which supplies Europe with natural gas. "We have to protect both of these gas routes along the Black Sea floor because the Ukrainian armed forces are attempting to attack and destroy them. In any case, the ships guarding them are under constant attack," Putin noted.