Ukraine Commander-in-Chief confirms Russia’s use of naval drones

Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny told Mark Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, that Russia has used naval surface drones.

“I informed my colleague about the results of the latest massive enemy missile attack, stressed the importance of air defense systems, and thanked him again for providing them. I shared my concern about Russia’s use of naval surface drones, which pose a threat to civilian shipping on the Black Sea,” Zaluzhny posted on his Telegram channel. 

As both Russian and Ukrainian media have noted, Ukraine has not previously reported the use of naval drones by Russia. Zaluzhny did not specify how long naval drone attacks have been going on or how many times Russia has used the devices.

Russian pro-war Telegram channels posted on February 10 about naval drones allegedly attacking a bridge in the Odesa region. One such account said that Russia began developing the naval drones in the fall, based on a Ukrainian unmanned boat found off the coast of Crimea.

Meduza cannot immediately verify these statements.