Ukraine’s continued success in conducting its asymmetric maritime strike campaign has resulted in a visit by russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu to the Black Sea Fleet (BSF) command post in Crimea on March 17, 2024, the UK Defense Intelligence reports. Sergey Shoigu received updates on Ukrainian operations and discussed the performance of russian naval assets in the region. According to the russian Ministry of Defense he announced new measures for BSF units to mitigate the threat of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) and unmanned surface vehicles (USV).
Emphasis was given to the conducting of daily anti-UAV/USV preparedness exercises to enable ships’ crews to quickly repel attacks during the day and at night. Sergey Shoigu also ordered additional large-calibre weapons be fitted to unspecified assets to augment their defenses.
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The russian Navy has highly likely resorted to limiting its operations to the eastern Black Sea as its losses mount, and its threat perceptions increase. With Ukraine continuing to seek out opportunities to strike at distance, the russian Ministry of Defense has been prompted to increase its efforts to preserve its fleet in the Black Sea.
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