Former US Colonel Calls Ukraine Sea Drones Used to Attack Russian Oil Tanker a ‘Game Changer’

A former U.S. Air Force Colonel is offering high praise for what the Ukrainian military has been able to achieve in the Black Sea while lacking a formal Navy, specifically citing sea drones as a "game changer," 18 months into the war against Russia.

Sea drones were used to strike a Russian oil tanker in the Kerch Strait off annexed Crimea in the Black Sea Friday night. Russian officials said that the Crimean bridge and ferry transport were suspended for hours, but no injuries were reported.

Another sea drone attacked a Russian navy base at Novorossiysk port, damaging a warship this week, according to Reuters. 

During a Saturday interview on CNN, former U.S. Colonel Cedric Leighton explained that naval vessels usually have radars that protect them against aircraft, but they don’t have enough protection against drones. 

“That's something that is going to be a big game changer once we really assess how capable the Ukrainians actually have been, in this particular case,” he said of the sea drone that struck the Russia oil tanker, adding that a sea drone attack could damage a large portion of a vessel and possibly sink it.  

“I think what you're seeing is really something that allows us to realize that the type of warfare that we're dealing with here is an asymmetric kind of warfare, and that's very different,” he said.

Leighton served as an intelligence officer for 26 years in the U.S. Air Force. His work included overseeing critical Special Operations and building partnerships with nations in South and Southeast Asia. The retired colonel is also the founder and president of Cedric Leighton Associates, a risk and leadership management consultancy.

On Saturday,  Maria Zakharova, Russia’s foreign ministry spokesperson, wrote on her Telegram channel that the drone attack caused a hole in the engine room of the vessel, affecting the ship’s ability to “move independently.”

She also condemned the attack and vowed retaliation, saying  that such “barbaric actions” are not justified and that they will “not go unanswered.”

“Their authors and perpetrators will inevitably be punished,” she added.

Ukraine’s recent sea drone attacks come as part of the country’s ongoing counteroffensive, which it launched to take back territories that Russia occupied since the war began in February 2022. 

Kyiv previously said that targeting Russian military infrastructure inside Russia or Ukrainian areas occupied by Moscow is an important part of its counteroffensive, which has been bolstered by military aid from the West that included advanced defense equipment and tanks.