Currently, there is no urgent need for the Russian army to use naval drones in the Black Sea, but these weapons could prove much more effective in the Baltic region, says Andri Rîjenko, the reserve captain, former deputy head of the Ukrainian military.
Russians copies Ukrainian maritime vessels
“Ukraine has no large ships to be targets for Russian drones. Instead, Russia could use them for port infrastructure or even against civilian ships that carry cereals from the Ukrainian ports through the so-called cereal corridor.”explained the Captain of the first rank in an interview with Radio Ukraine.
According to Rîjenko, it is more appropriate for Russia to use drones to attack maritime infrastructure or ports, as well as to sabotage civil ships that sail along the “cereal corridor” from Odessa, especially in the territorial waters of Romania, Turkey and Bulgaria. In this case, he mentioned, the Russian Federation could try to accuse Ukraine of accidental attacks on ships.
Regarding technology, the expert emphasizes that the maritime drone is not complicated to build: many of the components can be taken from the civilian area. However, the problem for Russia remains the control system – sensors and communication equipment. “The Russians do not have their own performance sensors, and access to Western technology is restricted. They are based on imports through smuggling networks and intermediaries from third countries,” said Rîjenko.
If in the Black Sea the usefulness of these drones is limited, the situation changes radically in the Baltic. There, the ratio of forces between the NATO and the Russian fleets is 12 to 1, which makes the drones become a much more attractive means of defense and sabotage. They could be used to protect Russia's commercial routes and oil exports from Primorsk and UST-Luga ports.
“Russia will continue to develop these systems and test them in the Black Sea during the war, but the true stake is in the Baltic.”concluded the Ukrainian expert.
At the end of August, the Russians attacked the ship “Simferopol” of the Ukrainian naval forces with the naval drones, in the Danube's mouth area. The attack was interpreted by analysts as a signal that the Russian center for “Rubikon” unanswered systems began to use in the fight without a crew.
