The Russo-Ukrainian War continues to slog toward its third year, with Russia pushing into territories in the eastern part of the...
Russo-Ukraine War
Ukrainian Forces Plant Flag in Crimea Following Raid
Satellite image of the Crimean Peninsula. NASA Image
Ukrainian forces landed on Crimean shores Thursday, according to local press reports.
The forces, assisted by the Ukrainian Navy, planted a flag in Crimea before engaging in combat, the Kyiv Independent reported. Ukrainian forces landed near the village of Maiak, on the Crimean coast.
Ukrainian Defense Intelligence told CNN that Ukrainian and Russian forces clashed, resulting in casualties for the Russians.
CNN also reported that the attack...
https://news.usni.org/2023/08/24/ukrainian-forces-plant-flag-in-crimea-following-raid
Ukraine Opens Temporary Shipping Channels in Black Sea
Wheat fields in midsummer in Ukraine, Oblast Lviv in 2012. Raimond Spekking Photo
Ukraine announced temporary corridors for commercial vessels to depart Black Sea ports despite ongoing threats from Russia.
The routes will be used to allow civilian vessels to leave Ukrainian ports Chernomorks, Odesa and Southern, Ukraine’s navy announced via Facebook. Merchant ships that can confirm their readiness to sail will be allowed on the routes.
The last commercial ship to leave a Ukrainian port with grain...
https://news.usni.org/2023/08/10/ukraine-opens-temporary-shipping-channels-in-black-sea
British Defense Ministry Warns of Potential Naval Blockade in Black Sea
Dmitriy Rogachyov pulled into Sevastopol in 2019. Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
The British Ministry of Defense warned Wednesday that Russia could be planning a naval blockade of Ukraine. The blockade would prevent ships from pulling into Ukraine and the Kremlin’s latest move in the Black Sea since Moscow withdrew from a U.N. brokered grain deal.
Russia’s Black Sea Fleet altered its posture, likely to enforce a blockade of Ukraine, according to the British Ministry of Defense’s...
NATO-Ukraine Council to Discuss Russian Withdrawal From Grain Deal, Ongoing Port Strikes
Ukrainian port facility on the Danube River after an attack on July 24, 2023. Ukrainian MoD Photo
The NATO-Ukraine Council is set to discuss Russia’s withdrawal from a Turkey-U.N. brokered grain deal that allowed Ukraine to safely export grain from its ports.
The council will discuss the withdrawal Wednesday, Reuters reported. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy requested the meeting.
The United Nations Security Council also met on Friday to discuss the grain deal. Russia continues to bombard...
Eastern European Navies Expand as Russian Occupation of Ukraine Drags On
The launch of the Ada-class corvette, Hetman Ivan Mazepa, for the Ukrainian Navy. The Ada-class corvettes were first developed for the Turkish Navy under its MILGEM program and have four ships in service. Office of the President of Ukraine
Eastern European countries continue to bolster their naval forces prompted by Russia’s invasion into Ukraine.
Even with small coastlines and limited operations in the confined waters of the Baltic and Black Seas, the maritime domain is a major factor for...
Cavoli: NATO Increased Ready Troops By 700 Percent
The NATO flag flies aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) in support of Neptune Strike 2022 on Jan. 29, 2022. US Navy Photo
NATO’s new force model has already given its top commander a 700 percent increase in fully ready troops, Army Gen. Christopher Cavoli said this week on the first day of the alliance conference in Vilnius, Lithuania.
The command is now “force sourcing line units” to NATO’s three regional defense areas – the Arctic and North Atlantic; southern...
https://news.usni.org/2023/07/13/nato-increases-troops-by-700-percent
FEDs Investigating Former Sailor Behind Pro-Russian ‘Donbass Devushka’ Accounts
The ‘Donbass Devushka’ avatar and former sailor Sarah Bils. USNI News Graphic
The Department of Justice is investigating a former Navy non-commissioned officer for her role in spreading a series of leaked Pentagon documents, two U.S. defense officials told USNI News on Monday.
Sarah Bils, 37, a former aviation electronics technician 2nd Class who was last stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Wash., according to her official Navy biography, is allegedly behind a pro-Russian series of...
Pentagon: Russia Unlikely to Recover Anything Helpful From Downed Drone
MQ-9 Reaper UAV. US Air Force Photo
It’s unlikely Russia will recover anything useful from a downed U.S. drone, the Pentagon press secretary said Thursday.
Russia is likely looking to recover a U.S. MQ-9 drone that fell into the Black Sea after a Russian aircraft hit it, damaging its propeller. The U.S. decided to shoot the drone down after it was deemed uncontrollable due to the damage, USNI News previously reported.
In taking down the drone, the U.S. took steps to protect it, said Pentagon...