Ukrainian Drone Force Commander Reports 300 Ships Disabled
Ukraine is reporting a new milestone in its campaign, launched during the summer, targeting Russian shipping on the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea. Both Ukraine and Russia accelerated their attacks this year on commercial shipping, greatly reducing movement on the Black Sea and leading to protests from Turkey and others.
Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Force, released a statement on social media on September 22 asserting that his forces have now disabled 300 vessels supporting Russia. He says the campaign was launched on July 6 and since then they have focused on disabling ships supplying Crimea as well as carrying exports from Russia.
Brovdi asserts they have hit and disabled 134 vessels in the Sea of Azov and 166 vessels in the Black Sea. Most of the targets were either tankers moving fuel and energy products or dry bulk carriers.
He writes, “The Sea of Azov stands and will stand (still), together with the Kerch Strait. The ‘maybe we’ll slip through’ regime operates in the northern and northeastern part of the Black Sea.” He asserts Ukraine has brought shipping to a standstill, saying the “maybe we’ll slip through mode is in shambles.”
The campaign has been controversial, with Russia saying it was worse than piracy, as Ukraine was just attacking, not stealing like pirates. Russia has responded with its own increase in attacks, claiming it is targeting ships moving military supplies for Ukraine. Almost a day doesn’t go by that the Russian Ministry of Defense does not claim hitting a cargo ship in one of Ukraine’s ports or attacking the port infrastructure.
Russia reportedly placed a halt on much of the regional shipping, especially in the Sea of Azov. A report by Reuters today, September 22, said that Russia has taken to repurpose fertilizer, coal, and cargo terminals in the Baltic and Arctic and is diverting its grain shipments to those ports. Historically, 90 percent of Russia’s grain exports went through the Black Sea.
Ukraine has also been forced to find alternate routes to ship its grain, including the Danube ports and channels. It is also reported to have increased shipments by truck and rail, but grain exports have fallen.
Brovdi wrote earlier in the campaign, “The goal is the irreversible paralysis of oil, fuel, and cargo logistics used to bypass sanctions. We want every self-propelled vessel to become a drifting barge – blind and deaf. The objective is not to pollute the sea with oil spills, so we are not sinking them.”
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In one 12-day period at the beginning of July, Brovdi claimed his forces had hit 159 tankers. He asserts the campaign will continue and is contributing to Ukraine prevailing in the long conflict.
Turkey has attempted to broker a ceasefire to stop the attacks on commercial shipping. The deals have been repeatedly rejected, although there are new reports that Russia has indicated a willingness to work with Turkey. But for now, the strikes on commercial shipping are continuing.
