Ukraine's navy is far inferior to russia's in terms of size and technical capabilities, but russian ships no longer dominate the sea. Learn more about why the russian Black Sea Fleet does not feel safe

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At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the russian navy dominated almost the entire coastal waters of the Black Sea. russian landing ships and missile boats were able to come so close to the coast that they could be seen with the naked eye from the coast of Odesa. However, not a single russian landing group was able to land on the shore. 

Today, however, the picture has changed to the exact opposite. According to the correspondents of the Military Media Center, whose activities are coordinated by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the main efforts of the occupiers in the Black Sea and Azov operational zones are currently focused on improving the anti-sabotage defense systems of the base points. That is, russian ships do not feel safe even when hiding in the fleet's deployment points, including in Sevastopol Bay. After all, Ukraine was not only able to prevent the landing of the russian landing force, but also successfully destroyed a large number of russian ships, while having almost no navy of its own.

How many russian ships did Ukraine destroy?

According to the General Staff, Ukraine has destroyed or damaged 18 russian ships:

- 1 boat of an unspecified type went down in February 2022;

- the Samum missile ship and the Novocherkassk and Caesar Kunikov landing ships were damaged, and the Raptor boat and the Saratov landing ship were destroyed in March 2022;

- the cruiser "Moskva" sank in April 2022;

- the Raptor and Serna boats and the tugboat Vasyl Bekh sank in May and June 2022;

- the patrol ship Vasyl Bykov, the minesweeper Ivan Golubets, and the frigate Admiral Makarov were damaged between August and October 2022;

- two boats of an unspecified type sank in January 2023;

- the Ivan Khurs reconnaissance ship was shot down in May 2023, and in August Ukraine struck the SIG tanker and the Olenegorskiy Gornyak landing ship.

How many ships does russia have left?

As of February 24, 2022, the russian Black Sea Fleet consisted of 74 warships. However, arrogance and a certain relaxation due to a sense of dominant superiority at sea played a cruel joke on russia. And today, russian ships do not even enter the Northern part of the Black Sea, realizing that they are unlikely to return from such a "trip".

According to Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk's comments to Ukrayinska Pravda, there are currently about 50 russian military units in the Black Sea, but some of them are undergoing dock repairs. In general, there are up to 80 combat units at the basing sites in the Azov-Black Sea, including boats of various classes.

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What does the Ukrainian Navy look like?

According to the Ukrainian Navy, after the annexation of the Crimean peninsula by russia, Ukraine lost more than 80% of its assets and capabilities, as a significant number of Ukrainian ships remained in Crimea and some were appropriated by russia.

At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian fleet consisted of about 20 vessels, most of which were boats of various types. In addition, it should be borne in mind that Ukrainian border guards also have their own boats and ships that are not part of the Ukrainian Navy.

Currently, there is no official information on the size of the Ukrainian navy, but it is known that in 2023, the 385th separate brigade of special-purpose maritime unmanned aerial vehicles was formed, which became the world's first unit of this type, as its main equipment is maritime unmanned vehicles. 

How did Ukraine put russia on the defensive not only on land but also at sea?

First and foremost, minefields within the territorial sea and coastal missile systems played an important role, preventing the russian fleet from reaching the shores of Ukraine. However, the decisive factor was the Ukrainian "army of marine drones," which, although it did not drive russian ships into a dead end, forced them to change their strategy and actively defend themselves even in their own bays, creating special fences and underwater obstacles to prevent Ukraine from striking ships and key bridges.

In addition, according to Natalia Gumenyuk, head of the Joint Coordination Press Center of the Southern Defense Forces of Ukraine, the only tactic that allows russian ships to feel at least somewhat safe is to constantly maneuver. 

We believe that the last maneuver of every russian ship will be to sink to the bottom of the Black or Azov Sea!

Glory to the Navy and the Armed Forces!

We remind you! Ukrainian AI-powered UAVs have not only opened up many prospects for the army, but also created a revolution in the "world drone war." Read about how Ukraine has become an innovator among UAV developers and attracted investments from well-known Western entrepreneurs in our previous article.

Photo: Ukrainian Navy

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