Ukraine’s strike on KILO submarine weakens Russian fleet’s attack capability – UK intelligence

The UK intelligence reports that the Russian submarine "Rostov-na-Donu" and the amphibious assault ship "Minsk," which were on maintenance in dry docks in Sevastopol, sustained critical damage from Ukraine's strike.

Rubryka reports, referring to the intelligence update by the British defense ministry.

"Despite the Russian Ministry of Defense downplaying the damage to the vessels, open-source evidence indicates the Minsk has almost certainly been functionally destroyed, while the Rostov has likely suffered catastrophic damage," the report says.

Analysts believe any effort to restore the submarine would likely take years and cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

The difficult task of removing debris from the dry docks will also most likely disable them for many months. This will present Russia's Black Sea Fleet with the serious task of maintaining ships in working order.

"The loss of the Rostov removes one of the BSF's four cruise-missile capable submarines, which have played a major role in striking Ukraine and projecting Russian power across the Black Sea and Eastern Mediterranean," the review notes.

Background

On Wednesday, a video of the large Russian amphibious assault ship "Minsk" after being hit in Sevastopol started circulating in the media. 

The video that came into the possession of the Odesa publication "Dumska" shows that the ship's upper part was on fire. It is not revealed when the video was taken, but it is clear that water is being poured nearby, probably on another source of fire. One can suggest that the video was shot in the morning after the attack.

The publication reports that one can see significant destruction of the deck; the superstructure collapsed inside the hull, and the artillery systems and other weapons were also destroyed.

The Ukrainian forces confirmed the attack on the occupied Sevastopol on the morning of September 13, damaging Russian ships and the port.

The Ukrainian intelligence said that Russia is unlikely to be able to restore the damaged submarine and ship.