![]() ![]() Its 145kg (320 pounds) warhead is designed to sink vessels of up to 5,000 tonnes, but two strikes on the Moskva did so much damage that it eventually sank, much to the alarm of the Russian navy, which pulled back its warships from the Ukrainian coast. Snake Island has since then taken on greater importance and has been heavily fortified with advanced weapons.Ĭonsidered an “unsinkable destroyer” by some analysts, the island is bristling with search radar, at least five Tor and two Pantsir anti-aircraft systems and fuel and ammunition dumps. With a range of 280km (174 miles), it is designed to drop to between 3 metres and 10 metres (10-33 feet) above the surface as it approaches its target, making it hard to detect. The Neptune is locally made and based on an earlier Russian design. ![]() The powerful warship – the pride of the Russian navy – was hit and sunk by two Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles some 96km (60 miles) from Odesa. That all changed when the Russian heavy missile cruiser Moskva was sunk on April 14. Ukraine’s navy is almost non-existent and at the start of the conflict Russian warships operated with near impunity. Strategically placed, it controls the approach waters to Ukraine’s last three remaining commercial ports and is being heavily armed by Russia. A tiny islet 48km (30 miles) off the coast of Ukraine and Romania, it was taken by Russia in the opening days of the war. The key to this blockade has been Snake Island. Commercial shipping has been warned off, sea mines have been deployed in the waters leading to the port and the whole area of the Black Sea is constantly patrolled by Russian warships and fighter aircraft. Odesa, Mykolaiv and Chernomorsk still function as ports but Russia has initiated a blockade in order to ensure no grain leaves the country. Russian units now face mounting resistance as Ukrainian units have launched a sharp counterattack on Russian forces in and around Kherson and Mykolaiv, as they struggle to retain control of this vital southern coastal sector. ![]() Russia’s attempts to take these important trade hubs and the surrounding territory have failed and its advance has stalled. Between the two of them, they accounted for 80 percent of Ukraine’s pre-war grain exports. The country’s main port, Odesa, is still in Ukrainian hands, as is Mykolaiv. A quarter of Bangladesh, Egypt, Indonesia and Pakistan’s wheat comes from Ukraine. Ukraine accounts for 9 percent of the world’s wheat, 15 percent of its maize and 44 percent of global sunflower oil exports. Both are in the northeast of the Black Sea.Ĭommercial shipping that sails from the Black Sea is well placed, having immediate access both to the countries bordering the Mediterranean and to the Suez Canal and the markets beyond. Two of Ukraine’s five main commercial ports have been taken – Berdyansk and, after a brutal siege, what remains of the port of Mariupol. Several months in and Russia has been partially successful. The seizure of Ukraine’s ports would strangle the country economically at a time when Ukraine most needs the funds to fend off Russia. From the opening days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, one of Moscow’s earliest strategic aims quickly became apparent as its armoured columns advanced along the coast in an effort to seize Ukraine’s coastline and cut it off from the sea. ![]()
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