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Ukraine said Monday it carried out an underwater drone strike that critically damaged a Russian Kilo-class submarine docked in the port of Novorossiysk, marking the first known attack of its kind.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said its “Sub Sea Baby” underwater drones struck a Russian submarine equipped with four launchers for Kalibr cruise missiles used to target Kyiv and other parts of the country.
The operation was carried out by the Ukrainian Navy and the SBU’s 13th Main Directorate of Military Counterintelligence.
Video released by the SBU showed several ships docked at the Novorossiysk naval base in Russia’s Krasnodar region before a large explosion occurred.
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The Security Service of Ukraine said its “Sub Sea Baby” underwater drones struck a Russian submarine on Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (Ukraine Security Service via APTN)
The base has become a key refuge for Russia’s fleet as Ukraine intensifies strikes on Sevastopol and other occupied Crimean ports.
The SBU said the submarine had been forced to remain in Novorossiysk because of other Ukrainian operations, including the use of Sea Baby surface drones that drove Russia’s Black Sea Fleet out of Sevastopol Bay.
A spokesperson for Russia’s Black Sea Fleet denied the strike caused any damage, writing on Telegram that no submarines or crews were harmed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin visits the destroyer Vice-Admiral Kulakov at the Black Sea Fleet’s naval base on Sept. 23, 2014, in Novorossiysk, Russia. (Sasha Mordovets/Getty)
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“[Ukraine] once again proved that minnows can swallow sharks using innovation,” drone expert Brett Velicovich told Fox News Digital. “Underwater drones are the next evolution in drone warfare.”
The submarine strike comes as Russia continues to launch large-scale drone and missile attacks on Ukraine and as the United States works to end Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war.
A mother cries at the coffin of her son, Oleh Borovyk, a Ukrainian serviceman killed in fighting with Russian forces near Pokrovsk, during his funeral ceremony in Boiarka, Ukraine, on Dec. 3, 2025. (Evgeniy Maloletka/AP)
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his negotiating team met in Berlin on Sunday with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine.
Zelenskyy also held talks with European leaders earlier in the week on a broader political framework to end the war, secure long-term protections for Ukraine and support the country’s postwar recovery.