Russian Navy chief dismissed after Black Sea Fleet losses - UK intelligence
Nikolai Yevmenov (Getty Images)
After a series of significant losses of Russian ships in the Black Sea, Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, the head of the Russian Navy, was most likely removed from his position and replaced by Northern Fleet commander, Admiral Aleksandr Moiseyev, according to the UK Ministry of Defense.
According to the report, Admiral Yevmenov's dismissal followed the removal of the second Black Sea Fleet commander since February 2022 and came after the loss of the corvette Sergei Kotov on March 5, the ninth major vessel lost to Ukrainian actions since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
As the British intelligence reports, although a career submariner, Admiral Moiseyev commanded the Black Sea Fleet between 2018 and 2019 before being appointed as commander of the Northern Fleet.
"It is likely that Admiral Moiseyev's first task as Commander in Chief of the Navy will be to stabilize the security situation in the Black Sea and implement changes designed to improve the Black Sea Fleet's combat capability in the region," the report says.
Russian submarine fleet
On the night of March 4-5, the special forces of Ukraine's Defense Intelligence, Group 13, struck the patrol ship Sergei Kotov of the Black Sea Fleet near the Kerch Strait. As a result of the attack by the Magura V5 maritime drones, the ship was destroyed. This is the third vessel of the Russian Black Sea Fleet to sink in the last five weeks.
After this incident, Russian media reported that Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, was dismissed.
Earlier, British intelligence reported that due to losses on February 15, Admiral Viktor Sokolov, the commander of the Black Sea Fleet, was dismissed.
