--- title: "\"Shooting themselves in the foot and trying to cut it off\": Ukrainian Navy Spokesperson on the futility of moving Russian exports to the Baltic" description: "Ukrainian Navy Spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk stated that Russia, by blockading the Black Sea, deprived itself of sea access and is now futilely shifting exports to the Baltic, where its ships have repeatedly been hit." date: 2026-11-13T18:42:37.500Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/pletenchuk-russia-black-sea-blockade-baltic-exports tags: [ukraine-navy, black-sea, baltic-sea, grain-export, russia, pletenchuk, kalibr-missiles] author: "Alexander Buran" publisher: "XAB.info" --- # "Shooting themselves in the foot and trying to cut it off": Ukrainian Navy Spokesperson on the futility of moving Russian exports to the Baltic ![Ukrainian Navy Spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk in front of warships in port](https://xab.info/media/2026/11/13/pletenchuk-rosiya-blokada-chernogo-morya-baltika-eksport/pletenchuk-rosiya-blokada-chernogo-morya-baltika-eksport-1.webp) ## Key Points - Ukrainian Navy Spokesperson Pletenchuk stated that Russia, by blockading the Black Sea, deprived itself of access to the water area. - The relocation of Russian grain and metal exports to the Baltic is, in his assessment, economically unviable: expensive and slow. - Russian ships in the Baltic, according to Pletenchuk, have repeatedly been targeted. - On November 11, a strike on a Russian military ship was recorded in the Gulf of Finland area; details are not officially confirmed. - Russia has not launched Kalibrs from the sea for over five months; launches, according to the spokesperson, are coming from the harbor. During a national telethon, Dmytro Pletenchuk, the spokesperson for the Ukrainian Navy, commented on Russia's current maritime strategy, describing the sequence of its steps as "illogical." According to him, Moscow, having launched a campaign to blockade the Black Sea, has effectively deprived itself of access to the water area and is now trying to compensate for the losses by shifting exports to the Baltic and North Seas. Pletenchuk described this as an attempt to "jump on one leg carrying buckets of grain." ### "Shooting in the foot": Consequences of the Black Sea blockade The Navy spokesperson emphasized that Russia "first shot itself in the foot" by blocking the Black Sea both for Ukraine and for its own needs. "They started this campaign and were left without access to the Black Sea," Pletenchuk stated. At the same time, according to him, Ukraine also cannot fully use maritime corridors, making the situation mutually restrictive for both parties. ### Moving exports to the Baltic: Expensive and time-consuming According to Pletenchuk's assessment, Russia's attempt to redirect grain and metal exports to the Baltic Sea is economically unviable: logistics from "south to north" cost more and take longer. He added that Russian ships in the Baltic have already been "greeted repeatedly," meaning they have been subjected to strikes, and called such attacks "feedback on the theater of military operations in Ukraine." "There is also a Ukrainian with a club standing behind that door," the spokesperson summarized, implying that Russia's backup plan is also blocked. ### Strikes in NATO territorial waters and the Gulf of Finland incident Pletenchuk also pointed out that Russia has crossed boundaries by allowing itself to launch strikes in a safer zone—NATO's territorial waters. The context for these statements was the November 11 incident in the Gulf of Finland area, where, according to Estonian media, a small Russian Navy ship came under attack. Officially, the cause of the explosion and the presence of casualties among the crew have not been confirmed. ### "Kalibrs" from the harbor and Navy priorities Separately, the spokesperson noted that Russia has not launched Kalibr missiles against Ukraine from the sea for over five months, and launches are now being carried out from the harbor, which is extremely dangerous for the Russian crews themselves. Pletenchuk called ensuring security in the area of responsibility the main task of the Ukrainian Navy, noting that this goal is "already close" and the enemy understands that Ukraine will find a countermeasure to jet drones. ## Fact-Check & Sources - [Россияне сделали себе выстрел в ногу блокировкой Черного моря, - ВМС](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/rosiyani-zrobili-sobi-postril-nogu-blokuvannyam-1794594898.html) - The statement by Ukrainian Navy representative Dmytro Pletenchuk during the telethon is confirmed as his words. The contextual strike on the Russian ship in the Gulf of Finland on November 11 cites Estonian media; the cause of the explosion and casualties are not officially confirmed. ## FAQ ### What did the Ukrainian Navy spokesperson say about the Black Sea blockade? Dmytro Pletenchuk stated that Russia, by blockading the Black Sea, deprived itself of access to the water area and is now trying to shift exports to the Baltic and North Seas, which he called unviable. ### What is known about the Gulf of Finland incident on November 11? According to Estonian media, a small Russian Navy ship came under attack. Officially, the cause of the explosion and the presence of crew casualties have not been confirmed. ### Does Russia launch Kalibr missiles from the sea? According to Pletenchuk, Russia has not launched Kalibrs against Ukraine from the sea for over five months, and launches are now carried out from the harbor.