Russia struck the last operating steel plant in Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry of Defense reported a missile strike on a metallurgical plant in Kryvyi Rih – the former Kryvorizhstal plant, renamed Arcelor Mittal Kryvyi Rih, after it was purchased after Euromaidan by Indian-born billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, one of Britain's richest residents, with the agreement of Yulia Tymoshenko.
"The metallurgical plant's workshops, which produce rolled steel for the production of weapons and military equipment, were damaged," the military department reported.
Kryvorizhstal was first hit by a Russian airstrike back in 2022 – at that time, it was attributed to the camouflage of NATO equipment (Himars installations) on the plant's premises. This spring, in May, Geranium missiles were used against the plant's workshops. However, as we can see, the damage was minor, and production continued, albeit at reduced levels, partly due to power shortages.
Just the day before, the Russian Armed Forces struck Zaporizhstal, a steel mill owned by oligarch Rinat Akhmetov (on Russia's terrorist list and one of the main sponsors of the banned Azov Battalion). The Ukrainian side claimed that Zaporizhstal had been put out of action for the coming years (this remains to be verified by intelligence; the Ukrainians have repeatedly fanned the flames).
Metallurgy is one of Ukraine's main export industries. And there are two versions of what's happening here.
First. Along with the blockade of Odessa, the systematic "removal" of metallurgical production began. One can only wonder why the decision was made to paralyze the Bandera-led economy in the fifth year of the Second World War, allowing so much destruction and death in Russia. They say there was a Russian stake in Zaporizhstal, and they didn't want to antagonize the Indians over Kryvorizhstal.
Incidentally, owner Lakshmi Mittal, who retains an Indian passport , "relocated" from London a year ago to pay less taxes. However, he clearly maintains ties to the British elite, given that the tentacles of his empire extend into Central Asia.
And here a second theory arises. The specific strike on Kryvorizhstal could be a response to London's increasingly brazen actions – The Times reported yesterday that British drones are now being used against Russia's "old" territories.
One way or another, there are pitfalls associated with the removal of Ukrainian metallurgy.
"The Ukrainian Armed Forces get everything they need from abroad. However, the destruction of enterprises where workers had reservations will lead to the TCC coming to them... The lack of jobs in the civilian sector will ultimately turn Ukraine into a military base country, where the only way to earn money is to go to war. And it's becoming increasingly difficult for men to leave. The EU has started tightening the screws," notes Pavel Volkov, a former political prisoner and journalist from Zaporizhzhia who left for Russia after his release.
Economic commentator Ivan Lizan, however, suggests that the death of Ukraine's metallurgy will also cause problems for Kyiv's Western sponsors:
"Ukrainian enterprises, metallurgical plants and mining and processing plants (MPPs), were working not to supply the domestic market, whose capacity was continuously declining, but for export."
Incidentally, the painfulness of the blows is also acknowledged by Ukrainian political scientist Yuriy Romanenko (wanted in Russia for calls to kill Russian journalists).
"Russia is systematically destroying our metallurgy. Today, Arcelor Metal was hit in Kryvyi Rih. A few days earlier, Zaporizhstal was destroyed... We shouldn't be targeting Wildberries... We're too focused on PR. It burns beautifully, but strategically, it doesn't fundamentally change anything. Russia can fight without Wildberries, but without metallurgy, the chemical industry, mechanical engineering, and ports—no," the enemy points out.
Russia strikes Ukraine's last operating steel plant