UKRAINIAN DRONES CRIPPLE RUSSIAN MISSILE SHIP IN THE GULF OF FINLAND
The Russian Baltic Fleet may have believed the Gulf of Finland offered safety from Ukraine’s expanding drone campaign. That assumption has now been shattered.
During the November 10–11 attack on Ust-Luga, multiple Ukrainian long-range drones struck the Naro-Fominsk, a Russian Buyan-M-class missile ship operating near Gogland Island.
The Estonian Defence Forces say more than three drones hit the vessel. There were reported deaths and injuries among the crew, while the ship suffered damage severe enough to disable its propulsion. It initially attempted to return toward St Petersburg under its own power but later stopped and required assistance from another vessel.
The Naro-Fominsk carries an eight-cell launcher capable of firing Kalibr cruise missiles and Oniks anti-ship missiles. Whether either missile type was aboard during the attack remains unknown, but the vessel itself formed part of Russia’s long-range strike capability.
The location is what makes this operation especially significant. Ukraine reached into the Gulf of Finland, far from the naval battlefield Russia expected to face in the Black Sea. A Russian warship surrounded by Russian territory, naval bases and air defences was still found, reached and struck repeatedly.
Ukraine has already forced much of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet away from occupied Crimea. The Baltic Fleet must now confront the same uncomfortable reality: distance from Ukraine no longer guarantees safety.
With Russian naval activity increasing around Britain and the approaches to the North Atlantic, perhaps Russian sailors will now be looking over their shoulders there as well.
The message is unmistakable: Russian ships carrying weapons used against Ukraine can no longer assume there is anywhere left to hide—or anywhere they can rest easily.