Ukraine's 40-day drone offensive sparks Russian retaliation that cripples Odesa port and warehouses
Ukraine's summer drone push targeting Russian warehouses and Crimea fuel ships provoked a massive Russian missile and drone counter-offensive that has sealed off Odesa’s ports and devastated Ukrainian storage capacity.
In late June, President Volodymyr Zelensky authorized a 40-day intensified drone operation aimed at compelling Russia to end the war by striking Wildberries warehouses and fuel ships serving Crimea. The first phase saw Ukrainian drones hit 35 Russian vessels and set off spectacular fires in retail depots, while Russian defenses initially struggled to protect civilian targets. By mid-July, Moscow overhauled its strike doctrine, launching a sustained missile and drone barrage on the Greater Odesa ports, sinking the Turkish-owned MV Golden Leo and effectively blockading the hub, prompting major carriers to reroute to Constanta.
Simultaneously, Russian forces escalated attacks on Ukrainian warehouses, destroying roughly 2.1 million m² of storage, about 42 % of modern capacity. The dual pressure has jeopardized over 60 million tons of Ukrainian agricultural products awaiting export, risking billions of dollars in revenue and undermining the country’s GDP. Ukrainian officials, including Major Gen. Vadim Skibitsky and Agriculture Minister Taras Vysotsky, warn the situation could cost up to $3 billion this year. The campaign’s fallout illustrates how Ukraine’s offensive has provoked costly Russian retaliation, reshaping the maritime and logistics landscape of the conflict.
Why it matters
The retaliation threatens Ukraine's grain exports and economic stability, while escalating the war's impact on civilian infrastructure.
How this story developed
- Sep 1 Russia multiplies jet-powered Shahed drone strikes fivefold in one month
- Sep 15 Ukrainian troops repelled a Russian assault on Lyman.
- Sep 20 In the early hours of Friday, Russia's anti-aircraft units reported destroying 35 Ukrainian drones heading for the capital. Local authorities said a comparable wave of drones was also intercepted in the Toula district south of Moscow. The incidents occurred as Russia began a three-day parliamentary and local election cycle. No casualties were reported from the interceptions.
- Sep 20 Zelensky said a major Russian oil refinery, a logistics structure and the Voronezh region were hit in the massive attack.
- Sep 20 Officials reported that 249 unmanned aircraft were intercepted in the latest wave of attacks.
- Sep 21 Election commission chair Ella Pamfilova said preliminary results will be announced Monday at 11 hours (10 hours in Paris).
- Sep 21 Russia's defence ministry said it will increase the frequency and precision of its strikes on Kyiv.
- Sep 21 Partial results show United Russia holding at least 338 of the 450 Duma seats.
- Sep 21 Preliminary results show United Russia winning 355 of the 450 State Duma seats, surpassing its previous 2016 high. The foreign ministries of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway issued a joint statement condemning elections held in Crimea and the four Ukrainian regions seized by Russia as violations of Ukraine's sovereignty. They demanded accountability for those organizing the vote and urged Russia to end its war and accept an unconditional ceasefire. The same period saw France support the removal of oligarch Alisher Usmanov from the EU sanctions list, a move backed by Slovakia and linked to broader negotiations over detained French nationals in Azerbaijan.
- Sep 21 The Quai d’Orsay condemns holding the vote in the occupied territories of Crimea and the Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, calling it a violation of international law and the UN Charter and stating Fran
- Sep 21 Western allies issued a joint declaration condemning the election as a breach of Ukraine’s sovereignty.
- Sep 24 Reports allege that corporate managers pressured staff to vote for United Russia, suggesting coercion in the electoral process.
- Sep 25 Ukrainian commanders announced further territorial gains around Lyman since the initial report.
- Sep 26 President Trump publicly urged Ukraine to negotiate a settlement with Russia.
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