The Russian Ministry of Defence has acknowledged the attack by naval drones on the Black Sea Fleet ship Ivan Khurs. It claims that the attack was "unsuccessful" and that all three unmanned boats were destroyed.
The Russians also published a video of the destruction of a single drone. The condition of the ship is unknown.
The attack on the Ivan Khurs was first reported by Russian military bloggers. According to them, the attack took place at around 5 a.m. It took the Ministry of Defence more than 12 hours to finally acknowledge the attack.
The Russians claim that their ship was on a mission to "ensure the safe operation" of the Turkish Stream and Blue Stream gas pipelines in Turkey's economic zone. The UAVs were allegedly destroyed 140 km from the Bosphorus.
"The Ivan Khurs is a unique reconnaissance ship for the Russian Federation. It is one of only two such ships in the Russian Navy.
It was commissioned into the fleet only in 2018. It is equipped with a variety of radio intelligence, electronic warfare, and communications systems to ensure fleet management. It is declared that the ship is designed to monitor missile defence systems, but the exact composition of the equipment is not disclosed.
According to Defense Express, the approximate distance between the area where the ship was attacked and the controlled territory of Ukraine is more than 400 km.