MOSCOW: Russia mentioned on Saturday it had repelled an tried Ukrainian drone assault on Russian “civilian transport ships” on Friday night within the southwestern a part of the Black Sea, a key artery for grain and oil exports from each nations.
Civilian vessels on the Black Sea haven’t usually been focused since Moscow ordered its troops into Ukraine in February 2022, however final July either side mentioned they might begin treating ships headed to the opposite’s ports as potential carriers of navy cargo.
In a press release posted on the Telegram messaging app, Russia’s defence ministry mentioned Ukraine had tried what it known as “a terrorist assault on Russian civilian transport ships utilizing semi-submersible naval drones”.
It mentioned Russian patrol boats and warplanes had averted the assault, destroying one Ukrainian naval drone by artillery hearth and disabling the remainder by digital warfare. No Russian civilian or navy vessels have been broken, it mentioned.
Reuters couldn’t confirm the Russian account. There was no instant remark from Ukraine.
Final July, Russia refused to resume a Turkish-brokered deal offering for secure grain exports by means of the area and mentioned all ships heading to Ukrainian ports could be handled as potential carriers of navy cargo.
A day later, Ukraine mentioned it will undertake the identical stance on ships certain for Russian and Russian-controlled Ukrainian ports.
It was not clear exactly the place the assault happened. The southwestern a part of the Black Sea adjoins Turkey’s Bosphorus Strait by means of which cargoes leaving the ocean journey.
Ukraine has in current months mounted a sequence of drone and missile assaults on Russian navy targets within the Black Sea, sinking at the least one naval vessel and damaging others.
Civilian vessels on the Black Sea haven’t usually been focused since Moscow ordered its troops into Ukraine in February 2022, however final July either side mentioned they might begin treating ships headed to the opposite’s ports as potential carriers of navy cargo.
In a press release posted on the Telegram messaging app, Russia’s defence ministry mentioned Ukraine had tried what it known as “a terrorist assault on Russian civilian transport ships utilizing semi-submersible naval drones”.
It mentioned Russian patrol boats and warplanes had averted the assault, destroying one Ukrainian naval drone by artillery hearth and disabling the remainder by digital warfare. No Russian civilian or navy vessels have been broken, it mentioned.
Reuters couldn’t confirm the Russian account. There was no instant remark from Ukraine.
Final July, Russia refused to resume a Turkish-brokered deal offering for secure grain exports by means of the area and mentioned all ships heading to Ukrainian ports could be handled as potential carriers of navy cargo.
A day later, Ukraine mentioned it will undertake the identical stance on ships certain for Russian and Russian-controlled Ukrainian ports.
It was not clear exactly the place the assault happened. The southwestern a part of the Black Sea adjoins Turkey’s Bosphorus Strait by means of which cargoes leaving the ocean journey.
Ukraine has in current months mounted a sequence of drone and missile assaults on Russian navy targets within the Black Sea, sinking at the least one naval vessel and damaging others.
