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UK Minister Hails ‘Functional Defeat’ of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet
Ukraine has not completely destroyed the entire fleet, but it doesn’t need to do so.
Russia has pulled back its fleet of ships from Sevastopol Naval base in Crimea.
Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum from the Polish capital on Tuesday, James Heappey, UK Defense Minister cautioned against reading too much into the size of Ukrainian advance this year, because it “diminishes the importance of what has happened in the Black Sea over the last couple of weeks, where a Russian submarine and a Russian ship have been put out of action, and the headquarters of the Black Sea fleet has been put out of action too.”
“The functional defeat of the Black Sea fleet — and I would argue that is what it is because it has been forced to disperse to ports from which it cannot have an effect on Ukraine — is an enormous credit. And [it is] every bit as important — every bit as much progress — as what was happening in the Kharkiv Oblast last year.”
Kyiv has successfully taken out several vessels from the Black Sea fleet, but it’s important to note that Russia’s Black Sea fleet is a substantial force, estimated to include “25,000 personnel (including marines) and consisting of approximately 40 surface warships (including…
