Video shows the moment Russian ships were destroyed in the Black Sea by drone attack

New footage appears to show the moment Ukrainian naval drones attacked Russian ships in Moscow-controlled Crimea as part of Kyiv’s latest wave of attacks on the annexed peninsula.

On Thursday, the Ukrainian military intelligence service GUR said one of its special units, known as Group 13, had “destroyed” two Russian patrol boats with the help of the service’s unmanned surface vessels (USVs).

A short clip posted by the GUR appears to show at least one naval drone being attacked by a helicopter. Grainy night vision footage then appears to show a ship firing at incoming drones before cutting to what appears to be the moment just before at least one USV strikes a stationary ship.

The Russian armed forces used various fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and small arms to defend against the naval drones targeting western Crimea, the GUR said.

Newsweek could not independently verify Ukraine’s report or the footage and has emailed the Russian Defense Ministry for comment.

Moscow’s Defense Ministry said on Thursday that its Black Sea Fleet had “destroyed four Ukrainian unmanned boats in the northwestern part of the Black Sea” over the past day. In an earlier statement, the Russian government said its air defenses intercepted eight Ukrainian-operated Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles over the Sea of ​​Azov – northwest of Crimea – as well as eight airborne drones in the Black Sea that were approaching the peninsula.

The GUR has developed the Magura V5 naval attack drones, which are often used to attack Russian facilities in Crimea. The USVs are credited with successful attacks on a number of Russian vessels in the Black Sea.

The naval drones of Group 13 destroyed Russia’s Ivanovets Rocket ship that Caesar Kunikow landing ship, a Russian corvette and a high-speed patrol boat since the beginning of the year, the GUR said in a statement.

Ukraine’s operations in the Black Sea were one of the most effective parts of Kyiv’s war effort.

Earlier this year, former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the Russian Black Sea Fleet would have additional weapons, including large-caliber machine guns, to repel Ukrainian drone attacks.

Kyiv is estimated to have damaged or destroyed a quarter of the Black Sea Fleet since Moscow began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Ukrainian drone and missile attacks have shifted Russia’s operations further east into the Black Sea, with many of its ships being moved from its Crimean base in Sevastopol to Novorossiysk in Russia’s Krasnodar region.