KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine struck a Russian missile carrier and a patrol ship in separate attacks this week involving sea-borne drones carrying experimental weapons, a Ukrainian intelligence source said on Friday.
The source gave no details of the damage but said the “Buyan” missile carrier was attacked on Friday and the “Pavel Derzhavin” missile carrier was attacked on Wednesday in joint operations carried out by the Ukrainian Security Service and naval forces.
“After the first detonation, Russian minesweepers and divers were unable to discover our know-how,” the source told Reuters. “The Buyan missile carrier… was struck today on the Sevastopol route by experimental weapons on ‘Sea Babies’ (naval drones).”
Reuters could not immediately verify the reports independently.
Tensions in and near the Black Sea have escalated since Russia withdrew in July from a deal allowing the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports. Russian drones and missiles have repeatedly struck Ukrainian port facilities and grain silos on or near the Black Sea and on the Danube River since then.
Kyiv has launched several successful missile and naval drone attacks on Russia’s Black Sea fleet in and around Crimea peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.
Ukrainian officials have said such attacks are intended to deny Russia control of the Black Sea and regain control of vital shipping routes.
In a separate statement, Ukraine’s Special Operation Forces said they had on Friday morning blown up a railway line in the Russian-occupied southeastern city of Melitopol.
“As a result of the explosion, the railway track and the train delivering ammunition and fuel to Russia’s army was damaged,” the special forces said.
Ukraine began a counteroffensive in early June to try to recapture territories taken by Russia. Kyiv has reported some gains on the southeastern front in a drive towards the Sea of Azov.
(Reporting Tom Balmforth and Yuliia Dysa, Writing by Olena Harmash, Editing by Timothy Heritage)