Ukraine claims its sea drones destroyed Russian warship near Crimea

Europe, News February 3, 2024 , by IRIA No Comments

Ukraine’s Military Intelligence Directorate (GUR) has reported that it used underwater drones to engage and eliminate a Russian warship in the Black Sea, close to the Russian-annexed Crimean Peninsula on February 1, 2024.

Ukrainian Directorate of Intelligence reported that the “soldiers of the special unit Group 13” of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine destroyed the missile ship “Ivanovets” of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation.

The statement highlighted, “The operation was made possible with the support of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine and the United24 platform,” adding that “The value of the ship lost by the aggressor state is approximately $60-70 million.”

The GUR reported on Telegram that the Russian Navy’s Trantul-class missile armed corvette Ivanovets was conducting patrols near Lake Donuzlav in the western region of Crimea when it was struck by multiple underwater drones. The ship sank shortly after the attack.

GUR also published a video to validate its claims. Approximately 2 and a half minutes long grainy footage was made up of live feeds from the drones. The video was accompanied by dramatic soundtracks in the background. It depicted numerous explosions, leading to the ship gradually tilting to one side. The video concluded with the vessel sinking into the sea.

“As a result of a number of direct hits to the hull, the Russian ship suffered damage incompatible with further movement,” the intelligence agency said in a statement posted along the video.

Ukrainian forces hit Russian Navy's guided-missile corvette Ivanovets — *^{Ukrainian forces hit the Russian Navy’s Ivanovets missile boat in the Black Sea. (Image Credit: Ukrainian Defense Intelligence footage)}*

The agency also claimed that Russian search and rescue operations for the ship and its crew were “not successful,” but it did not specify how many crew members were on board, nor did it mention if there were any casualties from the purported attack. Moscow has not yet responded to Kyiv’s claims.

An independent security firm Ambrey has assessed that Ukraine has used up to six sea drones, each of which usually carry 300 kilograms of explosives, in the attack. It was also reported that there were 40 crew members aboard the attacked ship.

Notable sinking

This is the second most notable sinking of a Russian naval warship in the Black Sea since the sinking of Moskva in April 2022, the Russian Navy’s flagship of the Black Sea fleet.

After initially denying the sinking incident, Moscow eventually admitted the ship’s loss, stating that the Moskva sank while being towed to port due to a fire caused by the detonation of ammunition.

Ukraine asserted responsibility for sinking the Soviet-era ship with a cruise missile, a claim supported by the United States.

*^{A satellite image of the Russian guided-missile cruiser Moskva in the port of Sevastopol, Crimea, on April 7, 2022. (Image Credit: Maxar Technologies)}*

War of disinformation

Disinformation has become a key feature of the Russia-Ukraine war with both sides reporting conflicting numbers and inconsistent events.

Earlier this week, when Russia and Ukraine exchanged prisoners of war, a conflicting number was quoted from both sides. Russia claimed that it released 195 Ukrainian prisoners in exchange for an exact number of prisoners, however, Kyiv claimed that it received 207 prisoners of war from Russia in exchange for 195 Russian prisoners.