Ukrainian drone hits Russian warship in Gulf of Finland
The strike on the Naro-Fominsk corvette occurred during a broader drone operation targeting a Russian oil export depot.
A Russian warship was attacked by a Ukrainian drone in the Gulf of Finland on Wednesday, according to BBC News. Ukraine's SBU security service stated that the target was the Naro-Fominsk, a Buyan-M type small corvette carrying Kalibr and Oniks cruise missiles.
The strike was part of a wider drone operation against Russia's Ust-Luga oil export depot on the Baltic coast. Estonian Defence Minister Martin Herem told public broadcaster ERR that the ship was hit at approximately 05:30 on Wednesday, noting that smoke was seen coming from the vessel before it headed back towards St Petersburg.
Finnish officials said the incident was caused by Russia's ongoing full-scale war. While the Finnish military provided few details, the strike reportedly took place in a narrow stretch of water some distance from the Finnish coast.
Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen stated that the situation in the Baltic Sea remains safe and stable, with no threat to marine traffic. Defence officials have noted that the Gulf is a narrow waterway used by civilian vessels and oil tankers, and contains subsea data cables.
Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tykhyy called Moscow's claims that Kyiv used Baltic airspace for the attack baseless. He noted that incidents could occur if Russia uses electronic warfare to divert drones from its own airspace.
Several storage tanks at the Ust-Luga terminal were thought to have been hit overnight on Wednesday. Estonian Defence Minister Herem said drones attacked the region between midnight and 06:00, mostly flying near the Estonian border.