Russian military bloggers have refuted official statements that Russian forces have secured the M-14 "Rostov-Crimea" highway — the main land route connecting mainland Russia with occupied Crimea — against strikes by Ukrainian medium-range drones.
This was reported by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), reported News.bg.
On July 20, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the occupation governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast Yevgeny Balitsky.
The latter stated that Russian forces had established "full control" — probably referring to the defense against Ukrainian drone strikes — over the M-14 highway "Rostov Oblast-Crimea" in the occupied Zaporizhia region and have significantly limited Ukrainian drone operations against the highway.
Balytsky also said that authorities have secured all energy facilities against Ukrainian strikes. Balitsky's claims have sparked a sharp reaction in the Russian ultranationalist media space.
A Russian military blogger directly refuted Balitsky's statements as "untrue", as Ukrainian forces regularly carry out strikes on the M-14 highway, leading to higher insurance premiums for Russian vehicles delivering fuel to occupied Crimea.
The Ukrainian campaign to intercept strikes against the occupied southern part of Ukraine has forced Russian forces to divert personnel and weapons, including drone crews and interceptor drones, to defending against Ukrainian strikes, and it appears that this has already deprived Russian forces, at least partially, of a vital ground line of communication connecting Russia to occupied Crimea.
Notably, the campaign of strikes has provoked prolonged reactions from Putin and other Kremlin officials, and Russian ultranationalists have disputed the official a fictionalized version of the success of Russian defense efforts against Ukrainian strikes.
Russia's ongoing campaign of long-range weapons strikes on cities across Ukraine reportedly contributed to the record number of civilian casualties during the war in June 2026.
The United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (UN HRMMU) reported on July 14 that conflict-related violence in Ukraine killed at least 293 civilians and injured at least 1,990 in June 2026. — the highest number of civilian casualties in Ukraine since April 2022.
The UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission (HRMMU) reported that Russian short-range drones caused the highest number of civilian casualties near the frontline so far in the war in June 2026.