Putin's new humiliation on the 'highway of death': How Ukraine has paralysed key Russian supply route with drones hunting down military convoys day and night

By ELIANA SILVER, SENIOR FOREIGN NEWS REPORTER Published: 10:43, 12 June 2026 | Updated: 10:54, 12 June 2026 Russian leader Vladimir Putin is facing fresh humiliation after Ukraine paralysed a key Russian supply route using drones designed to target military convoys, in another sign of shifting momentum on the battlefield.  Russian forces rely on the 'Novorossiya' route (highway R-280) as their primary land supply line.  This corridor runs along the Sea of Azov coastline, connecting Rostov-on-Don in Russia to occupied Mariupol, Melitopol, and Crimea. It serves as the main alternative to the vulnerable Kerch Bridge for equipping southern Russian troops. However, intense Ukrainian drone operations now dominate the airspace above the road, hunting down Russian military convoys.  Video footage filmed by drivers shows burnt vehicles and damage, often capturing the drone strikes themselves.  Due to the severe security risks, authorities almost entirely closed the road to civilian traffic in late May.  This heavy aerial bombardment has led Ukrainian forces to rename the route 'the highway of death'.  Intense Ukrainian drone operations now dominate the airspace above the road, hunting down Russian military convoys This heavy aerial bombardment has led Ukrainian forces to rename the route 'the highway of death' Video footage filmed by drivers shows burnt vehicles and damage Ukraine's 1st Separate Assault Regiment said on Tuesday: 'We see all movements and totally control the enemy's repair works. We are ready to make our long-range adjustments at any moment.' Ukrainian drone operators from the 412th 'Nemesis' brigade have claimed dozens of trucks and tankers have been destroyed as part of their intensified effort dubbed the 'middle strike campaign'. The offensive targets Russian forces and supply networks 20km to 200km behind the frontline.  Last month, President Volodymyr Zelensky noted that these strikes had quadrupled since February. Speaking on May 5, the Ukrainian leader said: 'There are now twice as many strikes at distances of 20km-plus compared with March and four times as many compared with February. And there will be even more. This is a priority area.' Ukraine's defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov said in late May that their intention was a 'logistics lockdown.' He added: 'Our task now, as directed by the president, is to maximise the middle strike and, in coordination with the military, create a complete logistics lockdown for the enemy.' The effect on Russia's supply network has been striking, with Robert Brovdi, commander of Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, saying on Tuesday that military cargo traffic along the highway had dropped by 71 per cent over the previous two weeks. Ukrainian drone units have revealed few details about their new tactics, but a key element appears to be the deployment of large numbers of drones to strike logistics routes, including roads, railways and bridges, in an approach that seems to have caught Russian forces off guard. US-produced Hornet drones, which are the size of a large surf board and have a range of about 150km, have been used in the attacks, according to The Guardian. A locally produced Ukrainian drone known as Morrigan is also being used. The two-metre long lightweight fixed-wing drone can be launched from a rail or slingshot.  Yevgeny Balitsky, the Kremlin-installed head of the occupied part of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region, warned drivers to limit their trips due to the danger of attacks.  He described a  'comprehensive remote mining system' that detonated on movement, in comments quotes on independent news outlet Meduza.  Effective May 21, the Kremlin-installed governor of occupied Kherson, Vladimir Saldo, enacted a decree limiting civilian freight traffic on the R-280 'Novorossiya' highway along the Sea of Azov. He said of the strikes: 'This is cynical barbarism. In its cruelty, these actions are reminiscent of the fascist blockade of Leningrad, when the enemy tried to intimidate people, sever connections between territories and break the will of the civilian population.' It comes as Ukraine appears to be gaining the upper hand in the war, now in its fifth year. A hotel and cafe destroyed following a drone attack by the Ukrainian Armed Forces on a cafe in the Moscow-controlled part of the Kherson region Your browser does not support iframes. Alongside a successful intermediate-range drone strike campaign, increasingly effective long-range drone offensives are piling pressure on Putin. Ukraine is striking at the heart of Russia's oil industry, embarrassing the Kremlin on the world stage and compounding a growing list of military and economic setbacks.  Over recent months, Kyiv has repeatedly struck refineries, oil terminals, pumping stations and export facilities deep inside Russian territory.  The cumulative effect has been to place increasing strain on Russia's energy sector, which remains the primary source of funding for the Kremlin's war machine.  In the latest blow, Ukrainian strikes on a city in Russia's Tatarstan region, more than 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometres) from Ukraine, hit a residential building on Friday, forcing cancellations of state holiday celebrations. Kyiv's army said it struck the major TANECO oil refinery in Tatarstan, as well as a factory producing synthetic rubber for use in ballistic missile production in Togliatti, on the Volga river in the Samara region.  And analysis based on data from the Institute for the Study of War found Ukraine retook more territory than it lost in May for the second consecutive month. Ukraine gained a net 282 square kilometres in the weeks after Russia had already surrendered around 120 square kilometres in April. The ISW said Ukraine's increasingly effective drone campaigns are disrupting Russia's ability to move troops and supplies to frontline positions. 'Ukraine's successful mid-range and frontline drone strike campaigns are limiting Russia's ability to transport personnel to the frontline and to supply and sustain frontline positions,' the think tank said.As Meanwhile on Thursday, British, French and German ambassadors to Russia urged direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv. The UK hosted Zelensky and the leaders of France and Germany earlier this week, supporting Kyiv's call for direct talks with Russia to end more than four years of war. The envoys met with Russia's deputy foreign minister Mikhail Galuzin. Moscow earlier said the meeting would be held at the request of the ambassadors. In a joint statement after the meeting, the three countries said they conveyed to the Russians the key conclusions of the UK summit, including 'the support for president Zelensky's urge to hold direct talks between Russia and Ukraine'. Moscow said the ambassadors had been told of their countries' 'destructive' policy on Ukraine, accusing them of wanting to 'continue the war against Russia on behalf of and at the expense of' European countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin this month rejected Zelensky's offer for a face-to-face meeting to end the fighting. Russia has preferred to talk to US President Donald Trump's administration on the conflict, with the Kremlin not wanting European countries involved. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. 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