Overview
- Radio Svoboda published a December 16 satellite photo showing explosion damage to a pier near a moored Varshavyanka-class submarine at Novorossiysk.
- Ukraine’s Security Service said on December 15 that Sub Sea Baby underwater drones critically damaged the vessel and effectively put it out of service.
- The Black Sea Fleet acknowledged a Ukrainian maritime drone attack on the base but rejected assertions that the submarine was nearly destroyed.
- Russia’s Defense Ministry released video of a submarine berthed at a pier, presenting it as evidence against claims of destruction.
- Open-source analysis indicates no clear proof of a direct hull strike, and ISW notes the operation likely sought to weaken Russia’s Kalibr missile threat and reflects Ukraine’s advancing unmanned maritime capabilities.