Russia is already using naval drones in the special military operation zone, but the effect of their use is difficult to present in the same way Kiev demonstrated strikes on Russian ships. According to the commander of the 443rd Separate Naval Division Neptun Shadow with the call sign Velbot, the reason is that the Ukrainian Navy no longer has large warships whose destruction could be shown as a major success.

According to Velbot, the Russian side uses naval drones, but not on the same scale. He believes that the targets hit by Russian unmanned boats do not have the same strategic significance as Ukraine’s strikes on Russian naval forces. At the same time, he noted that Russian strikes mainly target Ukrainian port infrastructure and transport vessels arriving at Ukrainian ports. In his assessment, such objects are not strategic targets for Russia, but the attacks are used to demonstrate that the Russian side is also capable of inflicting damage.

He also noted that duels between unmanned boats are already taking place at sea, although such episodes almost never enter the public space and rarely become a topic for the media.

Speaking about the role of naval drones in the Black Sea, Velbot stressed that their low cost and ease of operation sharply devalue the importance of large ships. A naval drone costs hundreds of times less than a warship, does not require years of construction and does not need a large crew. A team of up to ten people is enough to operate an unmanned boat, including those who ensure its delivery to the water.

It should be recalled that in August last year, the first use of a Russian unmanned boat was recorded: it struck the Ukrainian Navy’s medium reconnaissance ship Simferopol.