Ukrainian drone strikes force Russian oil tankers out of the Azov Sea, Defense Express says. Some 350 drones attack Moscow and the wider region, causing destruction in the city of Solnechnogorsk, local sources say. Zelenskyi joins a Coalition of the Willing meeting in Paris.
Ukraine drone strikes force Russian oil tankers out of Azov Sea, Defense Express says
Russia was forced to move its oil tankers to the Black Sea after dozens of its vessels were targeted by Ukrainian drones last week, Ukrainian news site Defense Express said on Monday, citing satellite images and reports by Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces.
Satellite images provided by the European Space Agency and dated July 11 and July 12 show that the Azov Sea, except for the Taganrog Bay, was almost “clean” of Russia’s shadow fleet oil tankers, the publication said.
Around 25 vessels were seen in the southern part of the Azov Sea, near the Taman peninsula on Sunday.
A large massing of ships was recorded on the other side of the Taman peninsula, in the Black Sea on Sunday. More than 50 vessels were parked in groups 15 to 30 kilometers off the shore. They were also visible on satellite images dated July 11, Defense Express said.
It is likely that cargo was being transferred between some of the vessels that stood close to each other, it also said. It also spotted small ships that could be Russia’s tugboats or military patrol boats.
Two other groups of vessels standing further to the south were likely waiting for their turn to reload the cargo, Defense Express explained.
Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces struck another 15 Russian vessels overnight on Monday, the branch’s commander, Major Robert “Magyar” Brovdi said in a post to social media. They included seven tankers, five dry cargo ships, a ferry and two tugboats. Ukrainian drones hit a total of 105 Russian ships in the Azov Sea in a span of eight days, Brovdi said.
The Unmanned Systems Forces struck 14 Russian ships in the Azov Sea overnight on Sunday, Brovdi said. The vessels included 10 oil tankers and four ferries. Around 120 Russian ships sailed in the Azov Sea on July 7, Defense Express said, based on satellite imagery. Most of them were dry cargo ships.
Ship-tracking data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence recorded 267 possible vessels with active AIS transponders in the Sea of Azov on June 30 but only 120 possible vessels with active AIS transponders in the Sea of Azov on July 11, potentially marking a 55 percent decrease, the Institute for the Study of War said on July 11.
Russia temporarily stopped shipping through the Don-Azov Channel, a navigable waterway linking the Don River with the Sea of Azov, Reuters said on July 10, citing three grain export industry sources. The move followed Ukrainian drone attacks.
Some 350 drones attack Moscow and wider region, causing destruction in Solnechnogorsk, local sources say
Drones attacked Moscow and the surrounding region overnight on Monday.
Moscow’s mayor Sergei Sobyanin said most of more than 350 drones that targeted the Moscow region were shot down far away from the capital, while around 50 drones were destroyed on approaches to the city.
Footage of air defenses at work in the city of Solnechnogorsk, in the Moscow region, was posted to social media. The drone strikes caused casualties, the local authorities and Telegram channels said.
Zelenskyi joins Coalition of the Willing meeting in Paris
Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyi joined the country’s allies in Paris on Monday for the latest meeting of the Coalition of the Willing. Strengthening of Ukraine’s air defenses was one of the key points on the agenda, Ukrainian media said ahead of the gathering.
Moldova and North Macedonia joined the coalition, Zelenskyi said. The EU leaders and the bloc’s defense companies were supposed to participate in the summit.
Zelenskyi was also expected to join French President Emmanuel Macron along with some 30 other state leaders for the Bastille Day parade. Ukrainian troops will march alongside the allied forces during the parade.
Zelenskyi said on July 9 that Ukraine will hold its first coalition meeting on the Freya homegrown ballistic missile defense system in France “in the coming days.”