Ukrainian missile attack on Sevastopol shipyard damages Russian ship and submarine

Europe, News September 15, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

Ukrainian forces have claimed that a missile attack on Russia’s Black Sea fleet in Crimea’s Sevastopol Shipyard has resulted in large-scale damage to the Russian military submarines and ships docked at the port. Kyiv also claimed to destroy Russia’s S-400 surface-to-air missile defense system at the port.

The claims were backed by a commercial satellite’s images released on the same day as the attack took place. Overhead satellite images of the shipyard taken by the Black Sky company the day before and the day of the attack showed two vessels in dry dock were visibly damaged.

Several observers and experts believe it to be the biggest military attack on the Sevastopol port and Russia’s Black Sea fleet since the beginning of the war.

Ukraine initiated a missile and aerial attack on Russia’s Black Sea fleet on September 13, 2023. During the attack, a large vessel and a submarine were struck. Ukrainian intelligence officials reported that the vessels had been wrecked beyond repair during the attack. Ukrainian military sources have not unveiled the types of missiles or drones that were used for the attack.

“We confirm a large landing vessel and submarine were hit. We do not comment on the means [used] for the strike,” Ukrainian military intelligence official Andriy Yusov told media reporters following the attack. “Those are significant damages. We can now say that with a high probability they are not subject to restoration,” he added in a separate interview.

Satellite images of Ukrainian missile attack on Sevastopol — ^{A combination image of satellite photos shows Sevastopol, Crimea before a Ukrainian missile attack, on September 12, 2023 (inset) and a view of the same site after the missile attack, on September 13, 2023. (Image Credit: BlackSky/via Reuters)}

The Russian Defense Ministry also confirmed an aerial attack on the Sevastopol Shipyard and the Russian Black Sea fleet. The Ministry said that a Ukrainian attack resulted in damage to the Sergei Kotov ship, a vessel primarily used for duties such as patrol, monitoring, and protection in open and closed seas.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that its aerial defense system shot down 11 Ukrainian drones overnight. The sources, however, did not confirm any damages to the submarines, air defense systems, and warships, as claimed by Kyiv.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made special reference to the Crimea attack in his nightly message on September 14. Zelenskyy said, “The entire staff of the Security Service of Ukraine and our Navy should be specially commended for this.”

“I thank you for today’s triumph, the destruction of the occupiers’ air defense system on the land of our Crimea. It is a very significant achievement. Well done!” Zelenskyy said during his video message that was posted on Twitter.

Ukraine’s counteroffensive

Backed by the arms, weapons, and support from its Western partners, Ukraine’s counteroffensive has been making slow progress in the country’s south and east, largely due to the minefields laid by Russian forces.

Ukraine has been seeking additional aerial support, in the form of fighter jets and missiles from its partners to overcome the landmine issue and to make swift progress in reclaiming the lost territories.

*^{Ukrainian service members fire a Caesar self-propelled howitzer towards Russian troops near Avdiivka. (Image Credit: Viacheslav Ratynskyi/Reuters)}*

The Ukrainian military, which launched a counteroffensive in early June, took the unusual step of publicly claiming responsibility for the latest strike on Sevastopol, something it does not typically do with respect to attacks on Russia or the Crimean peninsula.