The Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valery Zaluzhny, said in a phone call with the US Chief of Staff, General Mark Milley, that Russia is using underwater unmanned aerial vehicles. A message about the meeting was published on the social networks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“I shared my concerns about Russia’s use of submarine drones in the Black Sea, which pose a threat to civilian shipping,” said Zaluzhny.
According to him, he shared information with Milli about the last major attack by Russian troops. The Russian Ministry of Defense previously reported on February 10 that rocket attacks were carried out on Ukrainian energy infrastructure facilities, which ensure the efficiency of the military-industrial complex.
In this context, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces reminded his American colleague of the importance of air defense systems and thanked Washington for providing them.
He told Zaluzhny Milli that the most tense situation is currently developing in the direction of Donetsk, where the Armed Forces of Ukraine have to repel 50 daily attacks of Russian troops.
“Fierce clashes continue in the Ugledar and Marinka region. We’re holding up the defense well. In some sectors of the front, it was possible to regain previously lost positions and gain a foothold there, ”said the Ukrainian military leader.
Zaluzhny and Milli also discussed the situation around Artemovsk (Bakhmut). The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said that the army continues to control the city and takes measures to stabilize the surrounding situation. The military leader noted that for successful operations on the battlefield, Ukrainian soldiers need an “appropriate” amount of weapons and ammunition.
The words of Zaluzhny on the use of underwater drones relate to the incident in the Odessa region. On February 10, a record of the attack on a bridge in the coastal village of Zatoka, allegedly carried out by a certain surface object, appeared on the network. Night shots show how an object floats on the water to the railroad bridge across the river, followed by an explosion.
This video was also shown by Russian Channel One, where it was said that Ukrainian troops used the crossing to supply equipment and ammunition. Ukrainian officials did not comment on the strike in Zatoka.
The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation also did not report the use of underwater drones in the Odessa region and the attacks. The Defense Ministry briefing said Friday’s attack was carried out with “long-range air, sea and ground-based weapons” and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Experts of the Rybar Telegram channel, who studied the course of special operations in Ukraine, noted that the supports near the bridge in Zatoka were apparently damaged. At the same time, analysts emphasized that there were no previous reports of the use of underwater drones by Russia – in fact, this is a new vehicle of the RF Armed Forces.
Water drones were previously used by Ukraine. In particular, they were used with drones flying in an attack on the Black Sea Fleet’s naval base in Sevastopol on October 29. This was the first coordinated use of two types of drones in the history of warfare.
After the attack on Sevastopol, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that unmanned aerial vehicles were launched from ships carrying Ukrainian agricultural products included in the “grain agreement”. In addition, according to Moscow, British military specialists were involved in the operation – they were engaged in organizing and coordinating the attack.
The first information confirming that Kiev has naval warplanes appeared in September 2022 – then one of these devices struck the coast of Round Bay, a few kilometers from Sevastopol. The drone was a semi-submersible enclosed boat made of carbon fiber more than five meters long with a jet engine from a jet ski. The drone was equipped with a camera system and satellite communications, and also carried about 60 kg of explosives with a detonator from an aerial bomb.
Ukrainian authorities have neither confirmed nor denied information about the possession of drones deployed at sea. However, two weeks after the Sevastopol attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky launched a fundraising campaign on the United24 crowdfunding platform to create a fleet of 100 naval drones to defend the country’s waters. The cost of the device was estimated at $250,000.