Episode Details

Silicon Bites SW26-219 | 2026-07-14 | The Siege of Crimea: How Ukraine Is Sinking Russia's Shadow Fleet. For one week — from the sixth of July to the twelfth — a Russian ship was hit in the Sea of Azov, on average, one every hundred and twelve minutes. And it’s still going on now. Will there be any vessels left? By the count of Ukraine's drone command, ninety Russian vessels were struck in that single week: tankers, tugboats, ferries, dry cargo ships. On the night of July ninth alone, twelve tankers, a tug and a cargo ship were hit — and we know some of those ships burned not from Kyiv, but from the Russian governor of Rostov Oblast, who confirmed the fires in Taganrog Bay, the evacuated crews, and, in a later strike, a dead sailor, himself. That total may now have exceed 100 vessels, and is still rising daily, hourly. And Moscow's response? Retreat. Russia has stopped accepting applications for transit through the Kerch Strait. It has halted shipping on the Don-Azov Canal — the artery connecting its river fleet to the sea. It is pulling its ships off the water rather than defending them. Roughly a hundred and twenty Russian vessels are thought to operate in the Azov. Ukraine's tally says three-quarters of them have now been hit.----------ACTIVE CAMPAIGN:We are raising funds for 5 of 15 Vampire DronesSilicon Curtain for Kupiansk Vampires. Dzyga’s Paw, together with Jonathan Fink, is joining forces to raise $40,000 to provide the Khartiia Brigade with Vampire Drones.https://dzygaspaw.com/silicon-curtain-for-kupiansk-vampiresThese heavy bombers are designed to destroy manpower and equipment, as well as for remote mining. The Vampire UAV, manufactured by Skyfall, has proven itself to be one of the most effective weapons in the Kupiansk direction. Skyfall is one of Ukraine’s largest defense tech companies, producing Vampire bomber drones, various modifications of Shrike FPV drones, P1-SUN, Shahed drone interceptors, communication systems, and components.----------SUPPORT THE CHANNEL:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.patreon.com/siliconcurtainhttps://www.gofundme.com/f/scaling-up-campaign-to-fight-authoritarian-disinformation----------TRUSTED CHARITIES ON THE GROUND:Save Ukrainehttps://www.saveukraineua.org/Superhumans - Hospital for war traumashttps://superhumans.com/en/UNBROKEN - Treatment. Prosthesis. Rehabilitation for Ukrainians in Ukrainehttps://unbroken.org.ua/Come Back Alivehttps://savelife.in.ua/en/Chefs For Ukraine - World Central Kitchenhttps://wck.org/relief/activation-chefs-for-ukraineUNITED24 - An initiative of President Zelenskyyhttps://u24.gov.ua/Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundationhttps://prytulafoundation.org----------SOURCES:----------