Ukrainian forces hit Russian convoy of about 50 fuel and ammunition lorries near Armiansk in Crimea

More than four years since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Russia is facing almost daily Ukrainian attacks on its oil infrastructure, while Western sanctions have made crude exports more costly as its own attacks on Ukraine continue.

Ukraine continues to attack Sevastopol with drones on Thursday

From deep inside a fortified underground bunker not far from the front lines, Robert Brovdi, the commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, outlined a plan to Reuters to "isolate Crimea in the near future" by cutting off critical supply routes used by Russian forces and logistics networks that keep the annexed peninsula connected to Moscow's war machine.

Russian forces call it the “Novorossiya” route, the crucial main supply line that snakes through the Ukrainian territories under Moscow’s occupation, linking Rostov-on-Don in Russia to Melitopol, Mariupol and Crimea via the Sea of Azov coastline.