Ukraine's Security Service Chief tells what kind of drones were used for strikes in Crimea

This was reported by the Security Service of Ukraine.

"Naval surface drones are a unique development of the SBU. No private companies are involved in this development. It was these drones that attacked the Crimean Bridge in July 2023, and some of them attacked the Olenegorsky Gornyak and the SIG oil tanker. We take a balanced approach to every special operation at sea. We do it carefully, but quickly and efficiently. We sting the enemy right in the heart," the SBU Head emphasized and added that the Navy helped in the implementation.

The marine drones that damaged the Crimean bridge in July this year were named Sea Baby on the initiative of the personnel. They were equipped with a warhead weighing 850 kilograms.

Two separate surface drones, each weighing 450 kg, were used to hit the Olenegorsky Gornyak landing ship and the SIG tanker.

Malyuk noted that the SBU team, assisted by civilian IT specialists and engineers, is working on the development and production.

"Our drones are manufactured at one of the underground facilities in Ukraine. Today, we have a lot of different interesting operations in the process of development and implementation, in particular in the Black Sea. I promise you, it will be a surprise, especially for our enemies," said the SBU Head.

The SBU chief emphasized that all the targets hit were legal under international law. At the same time, Western partners are not involved in these special operations, but are actively adopting the unique experience of the Ukrainian special service.

Explosions near the Crimean bridge: what is known

On the afternoon of Saturday, August 12, 2023, the head of the Russian occupation administration of Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, announced attempts by the Ukrainian Defense Forces to launch missile strikes on the Crimean bridge. According to him, two Ukrainian missiles were shot down by Russian air defense forces near the Kerch Strait.

Aksyonov said that the Crimean bridge was allegedly not damaged, and there was no information about the victims.

In turn, the Russian Defense Ministry claims that there were not two missiles, but one. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, it was an S-200 anti-aircraft guided missile converted into a strike version.

Prior to that, local publics posted photos with four places of smoke both on the bridge itself and near it. They show two clusters of black smoke and two of white.

Oleg Kryuchkov, Aksyonov's information policy "adviser," explained the appearance of white smoke as a disguise. He said that "special services put up a smoke screen.

Starting from 00:36 p.m., the occupiers blocked the traffic on the Crimean bridge. Russian Coast Guard boats were sent there.

Around 3 p.m., eyewitnesses began to report on social media about the smoke screen on the Crimean bridge, and a Krym.Realii correspondent counted at least five explosions.

Shortly afterward, Aksyonov and Russia's Defense Ministry announced for the second time that a Ukrainian missile attack had been repelled. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, it was again an S-200.

Explosions on Russian ships

On the morning of Friday, August 4, residents of the Russian city of Novorossiysk reported explosions. The Russian Defense Ministry said that Ukraine had allegedly attacked a naval base in the city with two naval drones.

The governor of the region said that there were no casualties or damage as a result of the attack. It was also noted that the infrastructure of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium was not damaged, oil shipments continue, but ship traffic in the port has been temporarily suspended.

Later, information appeared on the Internet that the Olenegorsky Gornyak landing ship had been shot down. In particular, one of the Russian propagandists wrote about this. He claimed that one of the compartments was allegedly flooded, which caused the ship to tip over to one side.

Captain Dmytro Pletenchuk, spokesperson for the Ukrainian Navy, noted that the Ukrainian Navy had nothing to do with the incident in Novorossiysk.

On August 4, a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukraine's Defense Ministry, Andriy Yusov, commented on the explosions in Novorossiysk and noted that it was a serious slap in the face for the Russian leadership.

On August 5, a representative of the occupation authorities in Zaporizhzhia, Volodymyr Rogov, said that "according to preliminary information, a Russian SIG tanker was damaged as a result of an attack by marine drones in the Kerch Strait." According to the crew, the engine room was damaged. The ship cannot move independently, but there is no fuel leakage. Two tugs were sent for assistance.

Immediately after the attack, the Russian occupation authorities had different versions of the events. Volodymyr Rogov wrote on Telegram about the explosion near the village of Yakovenkove.

Later, Volodymyr Rogov added that the bridge was attacked by surface and aerial drones. Three of them have already been destroyed:

"At the moment, a massive attack by combat drones on the Crimean bridge is underway... Three surface drones have already been destroyed in the area of the Kerch Strait and the approaches to the Crimean bridge... The surface drones have been joined by UAVs."

The head of the Security Service of Ukraine, Vasyl Malyuk, commented on the recent drone attacks on Russian ships and said that they were completely legal, as they were carried out in the territorial waters of Ukraine.

In order for the explosions in Russia to stop, he suggested that the Russians take the only opportunity to "leave the territorial waters of Ukraine and Ukraine's land."