- Russia accuses Ukraine of a naval drone attack on the port.
- There was a crew of around 100 Russian servicemen on the vessel carrying 450 kilograms of TNT when it was attacked, the source said.
- Says it has destroyed two Ukrainian sea drones
- Russian warship was damaged in the attack, two sources say
- Ship movements at the port were briefly suspended before resuming
A Russian warship was seriously damaged in an overnight Ukrainian naval drone attack on Russia’s Black Sea navy base at Novorossiysk, two sources said, after Russia said it had fended off the attack.
The civilian port, which handles 2% of the world’s oil supply and also exports grain, temporarily halted all ship movement before resuming normal operations, according to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium which operates an oil terminal there.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said in a short statement that the Ukrainian attack by two sea drones had been repelled in the waters outside the base and that the drones had been destroyed. It made no mention of any damage.
A Ukrainian intelligence source said the Olenegorsky Gornyak, a Russian Navy landing ship, had suffered a serious breach and could not conduct combat missions following a joint operation by the Ukrainian Navy and SBU intelligence service.
There was a crew of around 100 Russian servicemen on the vessel when it was attacked by a sea drone carrying 450 kilograms of TNT, the source said, without giving any information on any casualties.
Unverified video footage published on social media purported to show damage to the vessel. In one video, it was seen listing heavily to its port side. Andrei Kravchenko, a Novorossiysk city official, said on the Telegram app that the Olenegorsky Gornyak was one of two ships that had “instantly reacted” to fend off the Ukrainian attack.
Russian social media users had reported hearing explosions and gunfire near Novorossiysk on Friday morning. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium which loads oil onto tankers in Novorossiysk said its facilities had not been damaged and that oil loadings continued onto tankers that were already moored.
The port is one of the biggest in the Black Sea, and a major terminal for the export of oil and oil products. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium is the main exporter of Kazakh crude oil. Exports of Russian and Kazakh oil from Novorossiysk average around 1.8 million barrels per day, or about 2% of the global oil supply.
Britain’s military intelligence service said last September that Russia’s Black Sea Fleet had relocated some submarines from the Crimean port of Sevastopol to Novorossiysk, probably because of the increased threat of Ukrainian long-range strikes.
Tensions in and near the Black Sea have escalated since Russia last month withdrew from a deal allowing the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports. Russian drones and missiles have since repeatedly struck Ukrainian port facilities and grain silos on or near the Black Sea.
Russia has also reported an uptick in attempted Ukrainian naval drone attacks on its own warships in the Black Sea.
The Russian Defence Ministry said that its forces had also repelled an attempted Ukrainian attack on Crimea, which it annexed from Ukraine in 2014, using at least 13 airplane-like drones. It said there were no casualties or damage.
(With inputs from agencies)
