Russian Black Sea Fleet's power assessed after 1,000 days of war by British intelligence
Russian Black Sea Fleet shrunk by a quarter in 1000 days of war (illustrative photo: twitter.com/osinttechnical)
Russia's Black Sea Fleet lost a quarter of its ships to Ukrainian strikes. It was forced to withdraw from Crimea, but retains the ability to launch missiles, reports the Defense Ministry of UK.
As noted in the report, before Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Russian leadership almost certainly perceived the Russian Navy and the Black Sea Fleet as integral components of its strategic naval power.
“After 1,000 days of war, Russia’s naval capabilities in the Black Sea have been significantly depleted through highly effective Ukrainian operations,” the report said.
In addition, before the invasion, the Ukrainian Navy was significantly inferior in size to the Black Sea Fleet and was limited to a small number of large warships and coastal defense vessels.
However, according to British intelligence, since February 24, 2022, Ukrainian forces have destroyed or damaged more than 25% of Russia's large warships operating in the Black Sea, including the sinking of the Black Sea Fleet's flagship, the cruiser Moskva, which was previously considered an advanced air defense platform.
As a result, the Russian Black Sea Fleet was forced to move all of its main forces from its historic base in Sevastopol to Novorossiysk in the eastern Black Sea. Russian units operating in the region have also been forced to adapt their tactics and change the areas in which they operate.
“Despite Russia's Black Sea Fleet currently being limited to the Eastern Black Sea, it retains the ability to conduct long-range strikes into Ukraine in support of land operations,” the British Ministry of Defense said.
Earlier, the Commander of the Ukrainian Navy, Vice Admiral Oleksii Neizhpapa, said that the Russian Black Sea Fleet was forced to relocate almost all of its combat-ready ships from the occupied Crimea to other locations.
According to Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk, although Russian ships have been pushed out of the Black Sea, Russia still has an advantage in airspace due to the active use of aircraft and drones.
