KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine on Tuesday claimed to have sunk another Russian warship in the Black Sea using a high-tech maritime drone, as Kiev forces continue to target targets deep on the war front lines. Russian authorities have not confirmed this claim.
Ukrainian military intelligence said special operations forces destroyed the large patrol ship Sergei Kotov overnight. The ship, which entered service in 2021 and was rammed near the Kerch Strait, is reportedly capable of carrying cruise missiles and about 60 crew members, according to Ukraine.
Although there are dozens of other ships in the Black Sea Fleet, the sinking of such a modern ship would be a significant loss and an embarrassing blow for Moscow.
According to an article published last month by the Foreign Policy Research Institute, a US think tank, patrol vessels such as the Sergei Kotov are part of Russia’s efforts to counter drone attacks. The ministry said ships use radar and helicopters to detect and destroy drones that use grenade launchers and heavy machine guns.
Kiev’s forces are struggling to hold off better-equipped Russian forces at several points along a nearly stationary 1,500-kilometre (930-mile) front, but they are also targeting targets far beyond the battlefield. ing.
In the Black Sea, Ukraine’s successes against enemy warships drove the Russian fleet away from the coast, allowing Ukraine to create grain export corridors.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense posted a video on X (formerly Twitter) of what it said was a nighttime attack on the Sergei Kotov using a Magura V5 unmanned vessel designed and built in Ukraine and loaded with explosives. According to military intelligence, seven Russian crew members were killed and six injured in the attack, but 52 crew members were rescued.
Ukraine’s claims could not immediately be independently verified, and disinformation has been a hallmark of the fighting that erupted after Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022.
Private security firm Ambry said the attack took place at the port of Feodosia in Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014. Ambry said he saw footage of the Sergei Kotov firing, taken by the crew of a merchant ship in the port. Drone.
Ambry reported that the ship was hit at least twice, the second time causing a large explosion.
Last month, Ukraine claimed to have used drones to sink two Russian warships. On February 1, it claimed to have sunk the Russian missile-carrying corvette Ivanovets, and on February 14 it announced that it had destroyed the Caesar Kunikov landing ship. Russian officials have not confirmed these claims.
Kiev officials say about 20% of Russia’s missile attacks on Ukraine are launched from the Black Sea, and attacks on Russian ships in the Black Sea are an embarrassment for Russia.
Almost two years ago, the missile-guided cruiser Moscow, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, was severely damaged by a missile attack and sunk.
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Associated Press writer John Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.
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Follow AP coverage of the Ukraine war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine