Ukrainian military said on Wednesday it launched a drone attack on a Russian shadow fleet tanker, in a third such attack on Russian vessels in the Black Sea.
The operation to strike the Dashan vessel with Ukraine’s Sea Baby naval drones was carried out jointly by Ukraine’s Security Service, known as SBU, and the Ukrainian navy. A source within the Security Service said that the tanker
suffered “critical damage” and was disabled, according to preliminary information. The vessel which was flying the flag of the Comoro Islands, was en route to Russia’s Novorossiysk port terminal.
Video footage shared by the Ukrainian military shows Sea Baby drone diving under the tanker and multiple explosions in the vessel’s stern area.
The ship was travelling at top speed with its transponder switched off, during the time of the strike and it is not known what the vessel was carrying and whether the attack has triggered oil spills. The tanker, worth $30 million, has been sanctioned by a number of Western countries and the European Union for transporting Russian oil exports. The attack on Wednesday marks the third Ukrainian long-range attack on Russian tankers in the Black Sea. In late November, Ukraine’s Security Service and the Navy struck to more Russian shadow fleet tankers - Kairos and Virat in the Bosphors Strait in Turkey.
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