“The SIG tanker … received a hole in the engine room near the waterline on the starboard side, preliminarily as a result of a sea drone attack,” Russia’s Federal Marine and River Transport agency said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.
Saudi hosts Ukraine peace talks in bid to become global mediator
Saudi hosts Ukraine peace talks in bid to become global mediator
Russian media said the tanker, approaching the Kerch Strait that links the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, was hit by Ukrainian drones.
Ukraine’s Interfax agency, citing an unnamed Ukrainian security service source, said the attack was conducted by Ukraine’s security and naval forces in its territorial waters, using sea drones.
Reuters could not immediately verify the reports. There was no immediate comment from Ukraine.
Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks inside Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine, but has been saying in recent months that destroying Russia’s military infrastructure helps Kyiv’s counteroffensive in the 17-month-old Russian invasion.
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Why Russia is using ‘kamikaze drones’ in Ukraine
Why Russia is using ‘kamikaze drones’ in Ukraine
Moscow-installed officials in Crimea said the Crimean Bridge, which was completed by Russia in 2018 and has come under serious attack twice in the war, was not targeted in the tanker attack.
“Once again, there was no direct attack on the Crimea Bridge and there was no explosion in the immediate vicinity,” Oleg Kryuchkov, an adviser to the Russia-installed governor of Crimea, said on his Telegram channel. Ukraine’s UNIAN news agency said three explosions had been reported in the area.
A Russian-appointed official in Ukraine’s southeastern region of Zaporizhzhia, Vladimir Rogov, posted an audio clip in which the tanker requested a tow from tugboats.
Rogov, writing on the Telegram messaging app, posted pictures of what he described as shattered fixtures and equipment inside the vessels. Telegram channels linked to Russia’s security services posted similar photos.
The ship, Rogov said, had been supplying oil to Russian troops in Syria.
