No fuel for sale as Ukraine's blockade of Russian-occupied Crimea takes effect

Kyiv has succeeded in disrupting those with the use of "middle-strike" drones that can reach targets up to 200km (125 miles) away from the front line.

In recent months Ukraine has increasingly targeted other logistical routes too, including a highway running north from Mariupol to the eastern city of Donetsk and key transport corridors in and around Luhansk.

This has caused the fuel crisis to expand to the Russian-occupied territories in eastern Ukraine which had previously experienced water shortages as a result of the destruction of the water pipeline from the Siverskyi Donets river during the Russian offensive in 2022.

"People are just getting by... water comes once every three days," one Donetsk resident told the BBC. "There's very little petrol, and it's the most expensive in the country. Drinking water has to be bought."

There were very few cars on the streets these days, he said, but there was no real exodus from the area as "everyone who could and did want to leave has already done so".

"This can't go on indefinitely, and some measures will have to be introduced for the most vulnerable groups," he added. "A shrinking range of goods and rising prices are not such a serious problem for people who are mobile and economically active, but for the elderly, children, and people living in refugee accommodation centres it becomes a matter of life and death."

While Russian supply routes to Crimea are becoming increasingly dangerous and costly to use, they have not been fully cut off.

Analysts suggest Ukraine's targeting of key bridges may pose a greater long-term threat than its strikes on roads.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Tuesday the situation was challenging but under control and the government in Moscow was prioritising key areas such as Crimea and the "border areas".

Moscow has already halted exports of petrol and jet fuel and Novak said the government was also considering a "total ban" on exports of diesel.

Reporting for BBC Verify by Paul Brown, Sherie Ryder, Thomas Spencer, Adam Durbin, with additional reporting from BBC Monitoring.