New Footage Of Ukraine Drones Sinking Russian Warships Surfaces

New footage appears to show two Ukrainian strikes on Russian ships in the Black Sea, part of a series of successful maritime operations for Kyiv around the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

A clip posted by an influential Russian Telegram channel thought to be linked to Moscow's military appears to show troops aboard the Caesar Kunikov, a Russian landing ship that Ukraine attacked in mid-February.

Soldiers can be seen firing towards the water surrounding the vessel, before what appears to be a bright explosion.

Kyiv said on February 14 that Ukrainian-designed Magura V5 naval drones attacked the Caesar Kunikov near the southern Crimean city of Alupka, southeast of Russia's naval base at Sevastopol.

The uncrewed surface vehicles struck the left side of the vessel, Ukraine's military intelligence agency, the GUR, said at the time, publishing footage it said showed the waterborne strike drones approaching the Russian landing ship.

A separate clip widely shared online purportedly shows Ukraine's most recent strike on Russia's Black Sea Fleet, based partly on the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

Early on Tuesday, the GUR published a video appearing to show Magura V5 drones barreling into the Sergei Kotov, one of Russia's four Project 22160 patrol ships. The vessel was near the Kerch Strait, Kyiv said, and "suffered damage to the stern, right and left sides," the GUR added in a statement.

Ukrainian government-backed fundraising platform, United24, also shared footage it said showed this week's strike on the Sergei Kotov.

Seven Russian sailors were killed and 27 crew members injured, Kyiv said in an update on Wednesday.

Footage circulating online appears to show a naval drone pursuing the Sergei Kotov.

Newsweek could not independently verify the clips, and has reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry for comment via email.

Ukraine has a small navy, but has wielded naval drones and long-range missile strikes to great effect against Russia's Black Sea Fleet over more than two years of full-scale war. Within just a few weeks, Ukraine has sunk three Russian vessels in the Black Sea, an achievement markedly different from the difficulties Kyiv is having restraining Russian land advances.

Ukrainian naval drones destroyed Russia's missile-armed corvette Ivanovets in February.

"The Black Sea is not safe for Putin's Navy," British Defense Minister, Grant Shapps, said on Tuesday, referring to Russian leader Vladimir Putin. "Until recently that would have been unimaginable."

Shapps said in late December that Russia had lost 20 percent of its Black Sea fleet in the previous four months.

The Kremlin has relocated some of its Black Sea assets from Crimea to its Novorossiysk base in Russia's Krasnodar region, further from Ukraine's coastline. Russia is also thought to be establishing another Black Sea base in Abkhazia, a breakaway region internationally recognized as part of Georgia. This would move Russia's resources in the Black Sea even further away from Ukraine's reach.

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