ISW: Russia Deliberately Targeting Alternative Land Corridor

(ODESA OBLAST, UKRAINE) – Russian forces have struck a key bridge in the Odesa region in a deliberate attempt to cripple Ukraine’s alternative land export routes, according to a new assessment from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

The attack targeted a bridge near the village of Maiaky, a critical chokepoint on a land corridor used to export grain and other goods since Russian strikes disrupted maritime shipments. The ISW report suggests the Kremlin’s aim is to shift targeting from the maritime corridor to overland routes in a calculated move to suffocate the Ukrainian economy.

Analysts recalled that Russian forces previously struck the same Maiaky bridge in December 2025. This repeated strike on the structure underscores a systematic campaign to sever Ukraine’s logistical arteries. “Russian forces are likely shifting the focus of their strikes from the Ukrainian sea corridor to the land corridor in order to specifically impede Ukrainian grain exports and generally worsen the Ukrainian economy,” the report stated.

The assessment documents an intensification of Russian efforts to undermine Ukrainian export capacity since July 2026. Mykola Solskyi, Ukraine’s then-minister of agrarian policy and food, reported that a Russian strike on the night of 19 July destroyed 60,000 tonnes of grain in the port of Chornomorsk in Odesa Oblast.

Further crippling the sea route, Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk reported on 31 July that Russian attacks had damaged more than 20 vessels and significantly slowed the maritime corridor’s operation. On 15 July, the Ukrainian Agrarian Council stated that Ukraine had lost roughly a third of its grain export capacity due to missile and drone strikes by Russian forces on port infrastructure.

The sustained campaign is forcing a strategic rethink. Taras Vysotskyi, the new minister of agrarian policy and food of Ukraine, recently stated that Russian strikes are compelling the nation to seek alternative export routes for grain and other cargo via the Danube River.

Amid the escalating threat to civilian shipping, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan stated on 9 August that Turkey has proposed a moratorium to both the Russian dictatorship and Ukraine on strikes against commercial vessels in the Black Sea.

As a result of the hazardous security situation, restoration works on the damaged bridge crossing in Maiaky have not commenced, and an assessment of the structural condition remains ongoing.