Moment Ukraine's underwater drones strike £300m Russian submarine in 'first-of-its kind' attack
The submarine is said to have suffered critical damage and was effectively put out of action
This is the moment Ukrainian drones were seen to strike a Russian submarine in the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, causing critical damage to the £300 million vessel.
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Ukraine’s domestic security service, the SBU, said it used underwater “Sub Sea Baby” drones in a first-of-its kind attack.
Footage of the assault shared by the SBU shows a large explosion at the port as its drones devastated the Russian sub.
“As a result of the explosion, the submarine suffered critical damage and was effectively put out of action,” the SBU said. It is unclear whether any personnel were harmed during the attack.
The submarine was reportedly carrying four Kalibr cruise missile launchers, which the SBU said Russia uses to “strike at the territory of Ukraine”.
The video could not be independently verified.
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However, Russia has claimed the Ukrainian attack failed to deliver on its aims.
“The enemy’s attempt to carry out sabotage using an unmanned underwater vehicle failed to achieve its goals,” Alexei Rulev, head of the Black Sea Fleet press service, told state media.
But if the attack was as destructive as the SBU claims, the strike will deal a huge financial blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s army.
“The cost of a Varshavyanka-class submarine is about $400 million. Given the international sanctions imposed, the construction of a similar submarine could currently cost up to $500 million (£300million),” the SBU's press service said.
On Monday, the SBU also struck Russia’s oil rigs in the Caspian Sea for a third time, just days after Ukrainian drones hit oil refineries and multiple cargo ships from Russia’s shadow fleet.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a statement on Monday: “While diplomatic processes and negotiations are underway that could bring the end of the war closer, we must not forget that Russian strikes continue every day. Putin is using the brutality of the strikes as leverage in negotiations.
“Our ability to recover from strikes, our ability to produce weapons and strike back, our ability to shoot down Russian missiles and drones — are our leverage in negotiations.”
It comes as US President Donald Trump said "we're closer now than we have been ever" to peace in Ukraine.
He said on Monday "We had a very good conversation an hour ago with the European leaders involving the war with Russia and Ukraine.
"We had a very good discussion, things are seemingly going well but we've been saying that for a long time."
His comments came following reports officials agreeing to provide the nation with 'platinum' security guarantees.