For The First Time In History, A Drone Hit A Submarine: New Details Of The SBU Strike On The Russian "Varshavyanka"
12- 16.12.2025, 14:21
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It is possible that the Russian Black Sea Fleet will be transferred to Abkhazia.
The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) geolocated the strike with a maritime drone and confirmed that submarines equipped with Kalibras were indeed based in Novorossiysk. And now a fire is being recorded at the Russian naval base.
On the night of December 14-15, Ukrainian forces conducted the first-ever naval strike with an unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) against a Russian submarine, ISW noted.
On December 15, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) published a video showing Ukrainian BPA "Sub Sea Baby" strike the Russian Project 636 Varshavyanka submarine (NATO Kilo class) moored at the Novorossiysk Naval Base in Krasnodar Krai.
The SBU noted that the Varshavyanka submarine was equipped with four launchers of Kalibr cruise missiles, which Russia routinely uses to strike Ukraine. And damage to the Russian submarine appears to be so severe that further operation is impossible.
Planet Labs satellite images taken on December 5 show that two Kilo-class submarines were at the Novorossiysk naval base as of that day, while lower-resolution images taken on December 11 indicate that at least one Kilo-class submarine was at the base.
Data from NASA's FIRMS (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) system, released Dec. 15, indicates fires near the Novorossiysk naval base.
Russian forces had previously stationed Kilo-class submarines in occupied Crimea and the port of Sevastopol, but began withdrawing them from the western Black Sea and moving them to Novorossiysk in October 2023 due to a successful campaign of Ukrainian strikes against Russian Black Sea Fleet facilities.
Russia uses Kilo-class submarines to launch Kalibr cruise missile strikes in Ukraine, primarily in the Odessa region.
"Ukraine's strike on a submarine in Novorossiysk demonstrates that Ukrainian forces continue to modernize and optimize their unmanned capabilities, making it possible for Ukraine to strike Russian military targets at ranges that Russian forces previously considered safe," the Institute for the Study of War noted.
Where Russia will now hide its subs is unknown. It is possible that the Black Sea Fleet will be transferred to Abkhazia. The Russians may well expect that they will not be attacked on the territory of "neutral Georgia".
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