President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an evening address that Ukraine is working on a new maritime strategy, which should soon be approved by the National Security and Defense Council.
"We are working on a new strategy for our state at sea — the Ukrainian maritime strategy. This strategy will soon be approved by the National Security Council — its points are currently being finalized. We clearly understand that the war has changed the balance of forces in our entire Black Sea region, and the Russian fleet will never dominate this water area again. We are consolidating our interests, taking into account Ukraineʼs new technological capabilities and our new relations with partners," the president said, but did not give details.
- With the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Russia tried to set up a naval blockade of Ukraine. Because of this, Ukraine could not export products by sea. In July 2022, with the assistance of Turkey and the UN, a "grain agreement" was agreed between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, which created corridors for the export of products. Russia systematically disrupted it, blocked the operation of the corridors, and on July 17, 2023, announced its withdrawal from the agreement.
- Already on July 19 , Russia began to strike with drones and missiles at the port infrastructure of Ukraine in the Odesa and Mykolaiv regions. The so-called battle for the Black Sea began — Ukraine weakened the Russian fleet with dozens of attacks and unilaterally announced the creation of a new corridor.