Ukraine strikes Russian ships near Crimea, escalating attacks on fuel supplies
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- Ukraine's drone force commander Robert Brovdi says at least 25 ships were hit and set on fire over four days in the Sea of Azov, with Ukraine's military claiming 36 total, most belonging to Russia's "shadow fleet" of commercial oil tankers
- Brovdi claimed attacks on 12 tankers in a single night from Wednesday into Thursday, naming vessels including Venera-3, Sanar-1, Sanar-17, Klimena, Thetis, Alexey Savrasov, Penelopa, and the sanctioned tanker Blue near Yalta
- Two tankers attacked earlier in the week were each carrying about 7,000 tons of fuel from the Taganrog area to Crimea, against Putin's June estimate of Crimea's monthly fuel needs at 70,000 tons
- Russia's Black Sea Fleet has "shut itself in at Novorossiysk" per the Rybar Telegram channel, with the pro-war Military Informant channel calling the undefended tankers "a shooting gallery for Ukrainian drone operators"
- Fuel shortages and rationing now affect more than 90% of Russian regions; Russia has banned diesel exports and queues are reported at filling stations in Moscow and St. Petersburg
- President Trump told Zelensky at a NATO summit meeting in Ankara that the drone strategy is "an escalation, but it's also an escalation that can help lead to an end"
Why it matters: The Sea of Azov campaign is striking Russia's commercial fuel logistics — not just its navy — with tankers carrying roughly 7,000 tons of fuel each now operating without Black Sea Fleet cover. Combined with refinery strikes that have pushed fuel shortages to 90%+ of Russian regions, the attacks directly threaten Crimea's supply lines that Putin publicly pledged to defend.
