Ukraine attacked Russian naval targets and port infrastructure in the city of Sevastopol, on the Crimean peninsula, on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday. Moscow confirmed the attack, the largest so far against the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.
Again the strongest blow was protected at night. Ukraine destroyed part of the shipyard in the Black Sea with 10 cruise missiles and three uncrewed speedboats in the early hours of Wednesday, according to the Russian Defense Ministry’s own admission, which declared that two military vessels damaged in the Ukrainian nighttime missile attack They will be repaired and would continue in service.
Russia continues to bomb Ukraine from afar with long-range missiles and drones, and the peninsula’s shipyard builds and repairs ships and submarines for the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Sevastopol is not an easy target. It is located about 300 kilometers from the Ukrainian port of Odessa, on the Black Sea. It is not clear what type of missile kyiv used.
The Ukrainian military took the unusual step of publicly taking responsibility for the attack, something it does not typically do in operations against Russia or the Crimean peninsula. “We confirm that a large landing ship and a submarine were hit. We do not comment on the means used,” Ukrainian military intelligence official Andriy Yusov told Reuters, without giving further details on the extent of the damage.
Mikhail Razvozhayev, Sevastopol’s governor appointed by Moscow after the annexation, said on Telegram that at least 24 people had been injured. According to Moscow, its defenses shot down seven of the incoming missiles and the attack ships were destroyed by a Russian patrol.
Sevastopol is the largest city in Crimea and a major Black Sea port. The conservation of that strategic port, which he had ‘rented’ to Ukraine, was one of the reasons that moved Putin to annex Crimea in 2014.
“All emergency services are working at the scene, there is no danger to civilian property in the city,” the occupying authorities said. Several Russian Telegram channels published videos and photographs with spectacular flames in a seaside facility at dawn.
The attack is another sign of the growing capabilities of kyiv’s missiles. The Sevastopol fleet has launched numerous missile attacks against Ukraine during the war. For kyiv, it is a priority to neutralize that naval power.
