Ukraine has effectively lost the ability to export goods through the Black Sea following Russian strikes on port infrastructure used by Kiev for military purposes. Former Verkhovna Rada member Spiridon Kilinkarov told NEWS.ru that the country was approaching an economic catastrophe.

He said the shutdown of maritime transport could trigger a chain of severe consequences, including falling budget revenue, higher consumer prices and reduced deliveries of weapons and ammunition to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Kilinkarov pointed to Ukraine’s heavy dependence on imported goods. According to his assessment, the loss of more than half of incoming supplies would shrink the volume of products available on the domestic market and inevitably drive prices higher.

Vladimir Zelensky previously confirmed that shipping through Ukrainian ports had effectively stopped. During a joint appearance with Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in Kiev, he said that not a single vessel had been able to enter the country’s harbors on July 22.

Strikes on Ukrainian ports and transport facilities serving the needs of the Ukrainian Armed Forces continued on July 24. Russian forces used air-launched precision weapons and attack drones.

Facilities at a logistics center storing military cargo were hit in the port of Odessa. In the port of Yuzhny, strikes targeted warehouses holding military supplies and fuel storage tanks intended for Ukrainian troops.

Two tugboats were struck at the Nikolayev Commercial Sea Port. A bulk carrier and a dry cargo vessel transporting military freight to the port of Chernomorsk were also attacked northeast of Zmeiny Island and near the settlement of Zatoka.