Russian dry dock in Crimea damaged

RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS - In Brief 18 Sep 2023 by Alex Teddy

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On September 13 in Sevastopol two dry docks were damaged by Ukrainian drones. A ship and a submarine in it were also damaged. It could take months to repair them and remove the debris. Ukraine used 10 British cruise missiles for the strike. Cruise missiles are very expensive and in short supply. It is a measure of how important the target was that Ukraine used 10 missiles. The docks themselves seem to have been only slightly damaged. They are very hard to destroy. Even if the Sevastopol dry dock is fully function, ships in it are sitting ducks because they do not move for weeks. Ships need to come in for repairs every few years. Russia will be unable to repair ships in the Black Sea. They might not be able to sail out of the Black Sea.  Russia has only one fully functioning dry dock for large warships. That is on the Pacific Coast. Russia has some smaller dry docks elsewhere in the Black Sea but they cannot perform complex repairs. Russia has a lot of assets in Crimea such as air fields and ground troops. Control of the Black Sea is vital to interdicting Ukrainian grain exports and invading the Ukrainian coast.  Russian ships can also bombard Ukraine's cities. Russia can also supply Crimea by sea. On September 11 Ukraine retook some oil platforms in the sea. Russia had used these as helicopter landing pads, radar stations and missile launch pads.