According to the official representative of the Ministry of Defense Igor Konashenkov, the Ukrainian boats were attacked to take revenge on those who laid down their weapons and blame Russia for the deaths of prisoners
MOSCOW, February 26. /tass/. Ukrainian boats on Friday evening tried to attack the ships of the Black Sea Fleet, which evacuated the surrendered Ukrainian military from the island of Zmeiny. This was announced at a briefing on Saturday by the official representative of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Igor Konashenkov.
"On the evening of February 25, during the evacuation of 82 Ukrainian servicemen who voluntarily laid down their arms from the island of Zmeiny, 16 boats of the Ukrainian Navy, using swarm tactics, tried to attack the ships of the Black Sea Fleet," Konashenkov said, noting that some of the boats were covered by civilian vessels.
According to him, the Ukrainian boats were attacked in order to take revenge on those who laid down their weapons and blame Russia for the deaths of prisoners. "As a result of the naval battle, six boats of the Ukrainian Navy were destroyed. None of the 82 Ukrainian servicemen from Zmeiny Island were injured," he added.
Konashenkov did not rule out that American unmanned aerial vehicles could direct Ukrainian boats to the ships of the Black Sea Fleet.
"I want to pay special attention. During the attack of the Ukrainian boats, strategic unmanned aerial vehicles of the USA RQ-4 Global Hawk and MQ-9A Reaper were barraging over the area of provocation. There is a high probability that it was American UAVs that guided Ukrainian boats to the ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet," Konashenkov said.