A major fire broke out on the left bank of Kyiv - In Odesa, a ship and a speedboat belonging to the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (SSO) were destroyed
Russia is determined to inflict massive strikes on the major urban and industrial centers of Ukraine, while simultaneously appearing to have activated a grand plan aimed at creating huge problems in the supply chain of the Ukrainian military.
The Russian armed forces launched another powerful air raid earlier today, Thursday dawn, July 16, utilizing ballistic missiles and drones against Kyiv and Kharkiv, as well as against the ports of Odesa in the Black Sea. It is characteristic that Odesa and the ports of the wider region have been the target of the Russian military for a week, specifically since July 10.
At the same time, Russian lawmakers are now openly and publicly declaring that the time has come for Russia to take Odesa and permanently cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea. Meanwhile, analysts point out that individual strikes are not of decisive importance, but rather their systematic character. They emphasize that the ports of Chornomorsk, Odesa, and Yuzhny constitute a unified supply chain through which Ukrainian forces receive fuel, western-origin ammunition, and drone components.
Massive strikes on Kyiv, Odesa
In an announcement, the Ministry of Defense of Russia states that the armed forces of Russia carried out group strikes against enterprises of the Ukrainian defense industry in Kyiv, as well as against facilities in the ports of Odesa.
As reported by the Russian Ministry of Defense, the targets of the attacks in Kyiv were infrastructure facilities, fuel storage sites, and assembly enterprises for medium and long-range drones. According to the same announcement, high-precision long-range weapons as well as unmanned aerial vehicles were used in the attacks.
Major fire on the left bank of Kyiv
Earlier, the SHOT channel on Telegram broadcasted that a large fire broke out in Kyiv following the Russian strikes. According to eyewitnesses, the fire manifested in the area of the Darnytskyi concrete plant, which manufactures fortification works for the Ukrainian military.
SHOT reported that this is one of the largest producers of reinforced concrete structures in Ukraine. The information regarding the powerful strike in this area of Darnytskyi is also confirmed by data from the fire monitoring service NASA FIRMS, based on which a major fire is reported to be raging on the left bank of Kyiv. However, it is not specified exactly which target was hit by the Russian forces.
Ukrainian Liutyi and Leleka-100 drones turned to dust
The Armed Forces of Russia struck a facility in Kyiv that assembles the Liutyi and Leleka-100 strike drones, according to an announcement by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
"The following were hit in the city of Kyiv: a drone warehouse of the radio-electronic industry enterprise Kyiv-1, which carries out the assembly and storage of aircraft-type long-range strike UAVs of the AN-196 Liutyi type, as well as Leleka-100 reconnaissance UAVs. Components for various types of UAVs were also stored in the same area," the Ministry of Defense of Russia claims.
In addition, the Ministry of Defense of Russia announced that an industrial facility of the logistics company PJSC Rapid was also hit in Kyiv. This facility carries out the assembly and storage of aircraft-type long and medium-range UAVs, as well as the storage of foreign components used for their production.
Fuel stations turned to ash
According to the same information, a mechanical equipment plant specializing in the repair and modernization of railway carriages was also hit. In the Sviatoshynskyi district of Kyiv, a fire broke out in a storage area.
Furthermore, according to preliminary information cited by SHOT, among the targets was also the enlistment office of the Darnytskyi district, as well as a neighboring fuel station. Located in the same area are warehouses, repair shops, and production facilities which, according to the publication, are used to support the Ukrainian armed forces.
According to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (DSNS), a fire broke out in a warehouse and in parked cargo vehicles in the Darnytskyi district. Two people lost their lives and another two were injured, including a child. In the Sviatoshynskyi district, a fire also broke out in a storage space, resulting in three more injuries. As reported, the attack was carried out with Geran drones and ballistic missiles.
Chaos for a week in Odesa
At the same time, it is reported that infrastructure in the ports of Odesa and Yuzhny, which were used for the transport and storage of military equipment and fuel, were hit. The Ministry of Defense of Russia also claimed that, during their approach to the ports of the Odesa region, a ship and a speedboat belonging to the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (SSO) were destroyed.
As clarified by the Russian side, a cargo ship en route to the port of Chornomorsk carrying cargo for the Armed Forces of Ukraine was hit, as well as a speedboat of the Ukrainian SSO in the area of Snake Island. At the port of Odesa, another five fuel and lubricant tanks, which were intended to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine, were hit. In addition, Telegram channels claim that the Russians struck a fuel base in the village of Vyzyrka in the Odesa region.
Attack also on Kharkiv
During the night, Kharkiv was attacked by Geran drones, according to the mayor Ihor Terekhov. In the Shevchenkivskyi district, a drone struck a park area, causing damage to a cinema, a parking lot, and tennis courts.
A second strike in the same district occurred at a complex of private garages, as reported by the local Ukrainian authorities.
Andrey Kolesnik (Russia): Let us take Odesa, cut Ukraine off from the Black Sea
Earlier, Russian State Duma deputy Andrey Kolesnik stated that Russia will place Odesa under its control and cut Ukraine off from the sea, arguing that Kyiv rejects peace initiatives.
Andrey Kolesnik also argued that Odesa constitutes a key logistics center for the transport of weaponry to the Armed Forces of Ukraine and, for this reason, constitutes a strategic target for the Russian armed forces. According to the Russian lawmaker, as long as Odesa and its region remain under the control of the Ukrainian armed forces, the areas of Zaporizhia, Kherson, and Crimea continue to be threatened, as surface drones and aerial drones are launched from there.
"If the situation develops like this and Ukraine does not accept even the terms that benefit it, while the West does not allow it to end the war, then it will need to be cut off from the sea," the Russian lawmaker characteristically stated.
The Russians impose a peculiar blockade on the Black Sea
The Russian forces are continuing their campaign of attacks against Ukrainian port infrastructure along the coasts of the Black Sea. An intensified Russian campaign of attacks against Ukrainian port infrastructure in the Odesa region and vessels calling at Ukrainian ports has been recorded since at least July 10.
The head of the military administration of the Odesa region reported on July 14 that Russian forces struck two merchant vessels flying the flags of Tanzania and Liberia sailing along the Black Sea corridor, and a civilian vessel flying the flag of the Marshall Islands in the port of the city of Odesa. The Ukrainian grain export company Kernel Holding reported on July 14 that Russian attacks against the port of Chornomorsk in the Odesa region caused damage to the company's terminal and destroyed approximately 25,000 tons of sunflower oil.
The Russian attacks are likely aimed at degrading the Ukrainian economy and reducing Ukraine's export capacity. Bohdan Kostetskyi, an operating partner at the agricultural consulting firm Barva Invest, stated on July 15 that recent Russian attacks against Ukrainian ports have essentially halted deep-water grain exports.
Kostetskyi stated that most major grain traders have suspended their grain purchases and that some export terminals have temporarily halted operations. Kostetskyi stated that shipowners are increasingly refusing to approach Ukrainian ports following the recent Russian attacks, citing force majeure reasons. The Russian attacks aim to reduce the number of crews and captains willing to sail this route. They also aim to reduce the ability of the Ukrainian military to use the ports to supply weapons.
Russians sank them in the Black Sea – With Lancets they swept naval drones of the Ukrainian military
Unmanned vessels of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were destroyed in the Black Sea using Lancet unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Russian army on July 15. The Russian Ministry of Defense revealed details of the clash on Telegram.
"The crews of the Lancet loitering munitions precisely targeted enemy semi-submersible vessels in the Black Sea," the statement reads. The agency also released footage of the strike on the target, which showed the moment of impact accompanied by a powerful explosion.
It had been previously reported that the Russian Black Sea Fleet destroyed four unmanned vessels of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Russian forces regularly repel attacks by Ukrainian surface drones in the Black Sea. For example, the ministry reported the destruction of an unmanned vessel on July 13. Furthermore, on July 8, it was reported that crews of Lancet loitering munitions struck a group of such drones.
What the experts say
Military correspondent Alexander Kots considers that individual strikes are not of decisive importance, but rather their systematic character. He recalled that the ports of Chornomorsk, Odesa, and Yuzhny constitute a single supply chain through which Ukrainian forces receive fuel, western-origin ammunition, and components for drones.
"The tactical meaning of the daily strikes is to collapse the transit capacity of the Odesa port hub to such an extent that external supplies become unprofitable due to time and insurance costs," Kots stated. The military correspondent explained that every vessel hit leads to a further increase in the cost of maritime transport to Ukrainian ports.
Military blogger Yuriy Podolyaka also emphasized the importance of systematic strikes. According to him, damage is now being sustained not only by the port infrastructure, but also by the ships. "With the Geran jet drones, Ukraine's logistics in the ports of the Black Sea and the Danube must be completely eliminated. This is exactly how a complete maritime blockade of the Zelenskyy regime must begin," he stated. Podolyaka noted that this is the only possible development of events, as Kyiv has already "declared such an unrestricted naval war."
Suspension of operations for Kernel Holdings
Commenting on the consequences of the Russian strikes, military expert Boris Rozin reported that the Ukrainian agro-industrial group Kernel Holdings temporarily suspended the operation of its terminal in Chornomorsk following the Russian strikes on the nights of July 11 and 12.
According to the company, grain silos, sunflower oil storage tanks, and power supply systems suffered damage. As a result, approximately 45 thousand tons of grain and 9 thousand tons of sunflower oil were blocked, while the export of products was temporarily halted. Kernel reported that deliveries of agricultural products to more than 60 countries worldwide were carried out through the terminal in Chornomorsk.
In Rozin's opinion, putting the facilities in Chornomorsk out of operation means not only damage for the company but also a reduction in the capacity of the grain corridor. In his estimation, this increases the pressure on other ports, complicates the export of the harvest, negatively affects the Ukrainian budget, and forces buyers of Ukrainian agricultural products to seek safer supply channels.
In the West, they also confirmed the large-scale consequences of Russian strikes on Ukrainian ports. Two days earlier, on July 13, British military analyst Alexander Mercouris stated that Russia's massive strikes on port infrastructure have essentially led to a blockade of Odesa. In his opinion, the attacks severely hamper Ukraine's maritime exports.
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