The drilling rigs in question are called “Bogco Towers.” According to Ukrainska Pravda, the platforms are located between the Ukrainian port city of Odessa and the Crimean peninsula.
According to the Ukrainian Military Intelligence Service, Ukrainian forces recovered oil and gas platforms in what it called a “unique operation.”
Ukrainian Defense released a video showing how their special forces drive small military speedboats to the platforms.
Some gunfire was heard as soldiers took control of the drilling rigs.
A Russian fighter jet is said to have tried to stop the operation, but retreated after being hit.
This video released by the Ukrainian Defense Forces shows its soldiers reclaiming oil platforms in Crimea.
The importance of war at sea
According to the British Ministry of Defence, Russian and Ukrainian forces controlled the platforms for periods during the war.
Nothing was said from the Ukrainian side when their special forces carried out this last action. But the video was published by the authorities today.
In the intelligence service’s statement, there are four named platforms that they are said to have recovered.
This is what the Ukrainian website wrote union.
From the Ukrainian side, it is said that the oil and gas platforms must have been used by the Russians for military purposes. Military helicopters are said to have used the platforms as a launching point to launch attacks against targets in Ukraine.
The Russians are also said to have placed radars in the Black Sea.
– Russia is now deprived of the ability to fully control the Black Sea, and this means that Ukraine is one step away from regaining the Crimean Peninsula, they say in the intelligence service’s statement.
– Symbolic and military importance
The Ukrainian authorities emphasize the importance of platforms for continuing the war in the Black Sea.
IMPORTANT: Lieutenant Colonel Geir Hagen Carlsen of the Norwegian Defense Academy told NRK that the Ukrainians’ move would give them better control of the Black Sea.
Photo: Evan Bjøringsøe Johnsen/NRK
Lieutenant Colonel Geir Hagen Carlsen of the Norwegian Defense Academy tells NRK that the Ukrainians’ actions have both symbolic and military significance.
– They can place radars on platforms and get a better overview of the area. Carlsen points out that they could place long-range missiles against naval targets there and limit the Russians’ ability to navigate.
It is also possible to have air defenses and helicopters on the drilling rigs. This allows the Ukrainians to attack forward.
At the beginning of the war, the Russians had almost complete control of the Black Sea, and now the Ukrainians were beginning to reclaim it.
– What is happening now is a battle to control the Black Sea, confirms the Norwegian expert.
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