On July 12 (local time), the Russian army launched attacks on the Ukrainian port of Chernomorsk in the Odessa region, hitting many anchored ships, the Russian Ministry of Defense said.
The attacks are aimed at "degrading the enemy's ability to transport weapons and military equipment in the Black Sea combat zone," the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement on July 12.
According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, at least 4 ships were hit, including a ro-ro ferry, a bulk cargo ship, a patrol ship and a fishing boat converted into a mother ship carrying unmanned aerial vehicles at sea.
The Russian Ministry of Defense noted that all targets were attacked by Geran-4 "Seeker" jet unmanned aerial vehicles. The "Seeker" variant of Russian UAVs is said to be equipped with a computer vision system applying artificial intelligence, allowing these unmanned aerial vehicles to search, identify and lock targets without the intervention of the operator. The video shows that all unmanned aerial vehicles participating in the attack seem to have locked the upper layer of the ships they targeted.
Previously, on July 11, the Russian Ministry of Defense said that its forces still maintain the ability to penetrate any air defense systems sponsored by Western countries providing Kiev, and "attack reliably all targets across Ukraine". The Ministry especially emphasized the continuous attacks on "Ukrainian seaport facilities, as well as various ships transporting weapons and military equipment to Ukraine".
In recent weeks, the Russian military has intensified long-range attacks targeting the military industry and key dual-use infrastructure of Ukraine, continuously launching large-scale attacks with suicide drones and cruise and ballistic missiles.
According to Moscow, this operation is a response to Kiev's "terrorist attacks" on Russian civilian infrastructure, attacks that have increased in intensity amidst Ukrainian forces continuously suffering recent defeats on the battlefield.
