Following their earlier attack off the Turkish coast in the Black Sea comes this, which must have been conducted with Nato planning.
from The Guardian
Ukraine says it has attacked a Russian “shadow fleet” tanker with aerial drones (2,000 km) from its borders, in the first such strike in the Mediterranean Sea.
Friday’s strike off the coast of Libya, which reportedly caused critical damage, took place on the day of Vladimir Putin’s annual end of year press conference in which he said Russia would respond to recent Ukrainian attacks on shadow fleet tankers.
It came amid an escalating maritime conflict over the shadow fleet, a term used to describe vessels used by Russia, Iran and Venezuela to evade sanctions with deceptive practices.
Kyiv has previously targeted Russian shadow tankers in the Black Sea as it has sought to interdict an important source of revenue that is being used to finance Moscow’s illegal invasion.
Estimated to comprise more than 1,000 ships, which frequently change their flags and whose ownership is unclear, the fleet has enabled Moscow to keep exporting its crude oil for much-needed revenue despite the curbs.
Experts and several European leaders believe some vessels have been used by Russia to conduct hybrid warfare across the continent.
Commenting on the latest attack, Putin on Friday said Russia would “definitely respond” to Ukraine’s attacks on its so-called shadow fleet. “Ultimately, this will not lead to the expected result,” he said. “It will not disrupt any supplies, but will only create additional threats,” he said, without directly commenting on the latest attack in the Mediterranean.
The Russian leader has previously threatened to sever Ukraine’s access to the Black Sea in response to the attacks on tankers, which he has derided as piracy. He was speaking during his annual call-in show with the nation, a carefully choreographed event that has become a fixture of Russia’s political calendar.