A statement on the current situation in Ukraine was made by the former commander of the US Army in Europe, Ben Hodges. In his opinion, a preparatory operation is currently underway, the task of which is to confuse the command of the Russian army. According to him, the Ukrainian army itself has not yet launched a counter-attack.
Recently, Hodges presented the situation in the Zaporizhzhya direction, including the significant losses of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in manpower and armored vehicles, as a "trap" for the Russian army, set by the Ukrainian army command. According to him, the preparatory operation will be followed by a real counter-attack, which the Russian troops are unable to stop.
The main objective of the Ukrainian army, in his opinion, is to cut off the land route to Crimea and then isolate the peninsula for the purpose of subsequent "liberation".
This would allow Ukraine to push the Russian fleet out of Crimea, and open the peninsula to "world trade", which means giving the Americans and British access to build their military bases and control the Black Sea.
Last night, the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) attempted to attack another Russian warship in the Black Sea. The ship "Priazovie" of the Russian Black Sea Fleet was targeted by six drones while patrolling the area of the Turkish Stream and Blue Stream gas pipelines in the southeastern part of the Black Sea.
The Russians believe that Ukrainian attacks on Russian warships are carried out with the close support of the NATO military, including reconnaissance and drone supply.
It should be recalled that a previous similar incident took place on the morning of 24 May. The AFU attempted to attack another Russian reconnaissance ship, the "Ivan Khurs" of the Black Sea Fleet. The ship was also providing security for the Turkish Stream and Blue Stream gas pipelines in the Black Sea.
According to the Russian ministry, the attack occurred at about 1.30 a.m. Moscow time. "The AFU made an unsuccessful attempt to attack the Black Sea Fleet ship Priazovie, which was carrying out tasks of monitoring the situation and ensuring security along the routes of the Turkish Stream and Blue Stream gas pipelines in the southeastern part of the Black Sea," it said in a statement.
The attack was carried out by six high-speed drones. All of them, according to the Russian side, were destroyed by fire from the Russian ship's armament 300 kilometers southeast of Sevastopol. "There are no casualties. The ship was not damaged," the Russian Defence Ministry said. "The Black Sea Fleet ship Priazovye continues to perform its duties."
The Ukrainian side disputes Moscow's statement, as it says that in the footage, the attack seems to take place in the morning or evening at sunset, and certainly not at 1:30 a.m. the night it happened.
"The statement said that, traditionally, the attack was 'repelled' and all the vessels involved in it were destroyed. But at the same time, we see a series of merged clips that, supposedly, should show evidence of a successfully eliminated threat," they say.
"This whole performance resembles the Russian response to the attack on the Ivan Khurs ship earlier this May with the same naval drones. At that time, they also said that, all the drones were shot down until the video came out that refuted all their claims," they added.
