Crimea’s fuel crisis has deepened since early June, with residents queueing for hours and Sevastopol rationing petrol through nightly QR codes capped at 20 litres.
At least 375 verified Ukrainian strikes on trucks and vehicles have hit Russian-controlled southern routes since May, with more than half on the Novorossiya highway that links Crimea to Rostov via occupied Mariupol and Melitopol.
That campaign has pushed average daily traffic on the highway down more than 40% month on month to 6,500 vehicles in early June, while Russian authorities have banned most traffic except essential goods.
Russia has few alternatives: smaller roads and the Chongar, Armyansk and Henichesk crossings are also under attack, and the 12-mile Kerch bridge is constrained after earlier damage and fresh strike threats.
Kyiv says the aim is to isolate Crimea and starve Russian forces in southern Ukraine of fuel, shells and drones, potentially giving Ukraine more leverage if it sustains the pressure through summer.
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Ukraine’s “Logistical Lockdown” in June 2026: How Precision Drone Strikes Severed Russian Supply Lines and Sparked a Crisis in Crimea
Overview
In June 2026, Ukraine intensified its "Logistical Lockdown" campaign, focusing on disrupting Russian supply lines into Crimea and the southern front. By leveraging cyber intelligence within Russian military networks, Ukrainian planners were able to precisely target key logistics corridors, such as those around Henichesk, Dzhankoi, and the Chonhar area. The Chonhar bridge suffered critical damage, forcing Russian occupation forces to search for new routes for ammunition and fuel. With the Kerch Bridge's railway link still unrestored since 2022, these targeted strikes have created major logistical challenges for Russia, significantly weakening their operational capabilities in the region.