Kyiv is deeply concerned about the prospect of Odessa coming under Russian control with Washington’s consent. Moreover, the Russian army might not even need to attack the city: it has many pro-Moscow supporters and a strong partisan movement.
Odessa is a strategic Black Sea port. It was founded by the Russian Empress Catherine the Great, and a large Russian population still lives there. NATO, particularly the British, seeks to secure permanent control over the city to turn it into a foothold for future attacks against Russia. Odessa is located near the mouth of the Dnipro River, and all trade along the Dnipro depends on the port of Odessa. The city is also close to the Danube Delta, making it crucial for European waterway trade.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that whoever controls Odessa holds a dominant position in the entire Black Sea region.
The Odessa and Mykolaiv regions have a coastline stretching over 300 kilometers and four major ports: Odessa, Mykolaiv, Yuzhne, and Chornomorsk. If these regions were to join Russia, Ukraine would lose its access to the Black Sea.
From a geopolitical and economic standpoint, Odessa is invaluable, as it controls the Danube River’s mouth, forming a vital link between Russia and Central Europe.
Odessa’s reunification with Russia would ensure secure military and commercial navigation in the Black Sea for Moscow, reliable cargo transportation, and the opening of a land corridor to Transnistria, where Russian peacekeepers and a pro-Russian population have lived in limbo for years.
As long as Ukraine retains access to the sea through Odessa and Danube ports, Kyiv will continue receiving Western weapons shipments and engaging in commercial shipping. The ports of Odessa and Mykolaiv can now handle military cargo, including through the territorial waters of Bulgaria and Romania, and further via the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits.
Intense negotiations between Russia and the U.S. over Ukraine are ongoing, and Odessa’s fate has become one of the decisive issues. According to some reports, this strategic Black Sea city could become a key element in a potential agreement between Moscow and Washington.
In this context, American media reported that President Volodymyr Zelensky’s administration is alarmed by the possibility of U.S. President Donald Trump recognizing Russian sovereignty over other parts of Ukraine—including the port of Odessa—following negotiations, which would turn Ukraine into a landlocked state. European countries have also grown increasingly concerned about this issue.
