The Ukrainian military says it has blown up a $400m Russian submarine in an unprecedented attack on the Russian navy’s most important remaining Black Sea base located in Novorossiysk.
The strike marks the first time an underwater drone has neutralised a submarine, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s advisor Alexander Kamyshin.
“As a result of the explosion, the submarine suffered critical damage and was effectively put out of action,” the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement alongside footage of the attack on Monday.
Russia has acknowledged the attack, executed by the Sub Sea Baby underwater drones on the Russian Kilo-class attack submarine. But Moscow denied any damage to its ships or submarines despite the apparent size of the blast, CNN reports.
“The enemy’s attempt to carry out sabotage using an unmanned underwater vehicle failed to achieved its goals,” said Alexei Rulev, head of the Black Sea Fleet press service, according to Russian state media.
Ukraine’s naval fleet has been all but depleted in the country’s ongoing war with Russia, forcing it to use sea drones and missiles to dislodge Russia’s large naval Black Sea Fleet from the port city of Sevastopol in the occupied peninsula of Crimea.
The diesel-electric submarine in question is reported to have been used to launch Kalibr cruise missiles, firing up to four at a time, according to the SBU. The weapons have been used to inflict damage to Ukraine’s power grid. Russia had been forced to move it along with other vessels from Crimea to Novorossiysk in southern Russia.
Video of the attack shows a powerful explosion in the water near a pier in the area, which has proved a critical location for Russia. Three other submarines remain stationed there.
The Russian class 636.3 submarine known as a “Black Hole” due to its ability to remain invisible to sonar and absorb sounds, could cost up to $500m to rebuild due to the cost of international sanctions, according to the SBU.
The show of power comes amid fraught peace talks with Russia’s deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov insisting that the country will not make any concessions on territory while Ukraine is adamant that any territorial changes will be subject to a referendum.
More than 280,000 Ukrainian households were left without power after Russia continued its attacks on Ukraine overnight.
“We hope the tribunal for Russian aggression will truly begin its work, not just for us, but for everyone who wants peace in Europe,” Zelensky told European leaders at the Council of Europe at the Hague on Tuesday.
