Ukraine’s General Staff said its drones struck “Okhotnik,” a Russian warship patrolling in the Caspian Sea, on Friday night alongside other oil platforms.
Ukraine has no access to the Caspian Sea, whose coastline is shared only by Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Iran, meaning any drones would have to traverse those countries’ airspace or be launched from within the Caspian itself, far from Ukraine.
The General Staff said the drones struck the warship, but the extent of the damage remains unclear.
“In order to reduce the enemy’s military and economic potential, on the night of Dec. 19, the Ukrainian Defense Forces successfully hit the Russian warship of project 22460 ‘Okhotnik.’ It was patrolling in the Caspian Sea near an oil and gas production platform,” the update says.
“Several Ukrainian drones hit the ship. The extent of damage and the ship’s side number are being clarified.”
It said a drilling platform belonging to Russia’s Lukoil was also hit.
“A drilling platform at the Filanovsky oil and gas field in the Caspian Sea was also hit. The facility belongs to Lukoil. The platform ensures oil and gas production and is involved in supplying the armed forces of the Russian aggressor,” the update says.
“Its further operational capacity and the extent of the damage are being clarified,” it adds.
The Filanovsky field is one of Russia’s largest discovered offshore deposits, with estimated reserves of 129 million tons of oil and 30 billion cubic meters of gas.
Ukraine did not say whether the attacks were carried out by aerial or maritime drones.
Escalation into the Caspian Sea and beyond
Ukraine has stepped up its drone campaign against Russian oil infrastructure in recent weeks, extending its reach beyond the Black Sea and targeting vessels that had previously been avoided.
By mid-December, drones operated by Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) had struck Russian oil production platforms in the Caspian Sea for the third time in a week, with the Dec. 15 attack targeting a platform run by Lukoil-Nizhnevolzhskneft at the Korchagin oil and gas condensate field.
Previously, the drones targeted the Filanovsky and Korchagin fields, with the Filanovsky field also the target in the latest strike on Friday night.
Ukraine has also begun striking sanctions-evading “shadow fleet” tankers ferrying Russian oil in recent weeks.
On Friday, SBU sources told Kyiv Post it struck an oil tanker in neutral waters of the Mediterranean Sea, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,243 miles) from Ukraine. The source said the tanker was used by Russia to evade sanctions and finance the war against Ukraine, thus making it “an absolutely legitimate target” under international law.
On Nov. 28, two tankers sailing under the Gambian flag – Kairos and Virat – were attacked near the Bosphorus. The SBU later said both ships were disabled by its Sea Baby maritime drones.
On Dec. 1, the tanker Mersin sustained damage off the coast of Senegal, after which its Turkish owner announced it would halt operations involving Russia. A day later, on Dec. 2, the tanker Midvolga-2 was struck near the Turkish coast.
On Dec. 10, Ukrainian forces also hit the tanker Dashan, described as part of Russia’s “shadow fleet,” in the Black Sea.