Ukraine doesn't have a naval fleet, but it's filling the gap with dangerous drones that terrorize Russian ships and disrupt critical sea supply lanes, especially in the Black Sea.
On August 4, Russian merchant tanker Sig was "attacked and disabled near the Kerch Strait," the UK Ministry of Defense said in a Wednesday update. The UK reports adds to claims the attack was done by a uncrewed surface vessel just days after a similar incident involving the Olenegorsky Gornyak warship, which was badly damaged by a first-person view drone ship the same day.
Although Sig was a civilian vessel, UK intel says it's "long been contracted to ship fuel and military supplies between Russia and Syria," and Moscow's forces in Syria have relied on Sig and other civilian vessels since Russia's full-scale invasion in Ukraine in February 2022. Russian warships have repeatedly fired missiles into Ukraine, and now are threatening merchant ships that enter Ukraine's ports.
It's the latest incident involving Ukrainian sea drones hitting vital Russian naval targets, weakening sea supply lanes and proving Kyiv to be a scrappy, formidable naval force while lacking an actual fleet beyond some patrol boats.
"The attacks show that USV operations are increasingly a major component of modern naval warfare and can be turned against the weakest links of Russia's sea supply lanes," the UK intel update said.
Ukraine has made the development of sea drones a priority, even crowdfunding for what they call "the formation of the world's first naval fleet of drones."
Part of the success of Ukraine's USVs has been their relatively inexpensive manufacturing and use. An expert previously told Insider the remotely operated, cheap-but-effective waterborne drones give Ukraine an "asymmetric advantage," stressing Russian defenses and resources. The drones also pack a punch, as seen in the damage done to the Olenegorsky Gornyak landing ship, and can be hard for Russian guns and missiles to hit if they arrive in a fleet or can't be spotted at night.
