Tension rising in the Black Sea! Russian-owned chemical tanker hit near Crimea

Ukrainian Forces, which launched an attack on the Russian navy yesterday, also shot a chemical tanker belonging to Russia with unmanned aerial vehicles today. While Russia announced that there was material damage to the tanker, traffic stopped for a while on the Crimean Bridge. The second attack carried out in the Black Sea in 24 hours was interpreted as an effort by Ukraine to show itself in a naval war.

While the Ukrainian war, which began on February 24, 2022, has been going on for a year, Kiev’s recent focus on naval warfare draws attention.

While Ukrainian intelligence announced that it had shot down a Russian navy ship in a drone attack yesterday, the Russian Defense Ministry also reported that Russian patrol vessels shot down and destroyed two unmanned aerial vehicles approaching the area near the Black Sea port city of Novorossiysk.

ATTACK ON A RUSSIAN TANKER

As the waters in the region gradually warmed up, another remarkable development took place today. The Russian news agency Tass announced that a chemical tanker belonging to Russia was attacked by Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in the Kerch Strait.

The Russian Maritime Agency stated that the tanker’s engine room had been damaged and a hole had been formed near the waterline. It was emphasized that there were no casualties in the incident.

TRAFFIC STOPPED ON THE KERCH BRIDGE

Traffic was briefly halted on the strategic Kerch Bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland as two tugs waited ready at the scene to help the tanker.

Tass announced that there had been no fuel spilled from the tanker with 11 people in it. The Moscow Times reported that the tanker was under US sanctions for providing jet fuel to Russian forces supporting Assad in Syria.

As the war between Russia and Ukraine gradually moved to the Black Sea, the attacks of both sides increased with the deceleration of the Black Sea Grain Initiative.

Kiev, which lost most of its navy after Moscow annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014, wants to demonstrate its ability to hit Russian naval forces far from home by establishing dominance on the sea front recently, military analysts say.