Kyiv expands Black Sea offensive with strike on Russian oil platform base

Ukrainian forces have carried out a strike on an elite Russian special forces unit stationed on an oil platform in the Black Sea, eliminating a team operating anti-tank missile systems and destroying reconnaissance equipment installed on the Sivash drilling rig, UNIAN reported, citing the Ukrainian Navy.

The Sivash platform is one of four offshore drilling installations — along with Petro Godovanets, Tavrida, and Ukraine — collectively known as the “Boyko towers.” These platforms were seized by Russia following its annexation of Crimea in 2014.

As The Telegraph notes, after taking control of the towers, Russia outfitted each of them with advanced reconnaissance, electronic warfare, and hydroacoustic systems. This network enabled Russian forces to monitor surface, aerial, and underwater activity across the northwestern Black Sea, particularly between Crimea and the Ukrainian port city of Odessa.

The latest strike on the Sivash platform comes amid a broader campaign targeting Russian energy infrastructure. In recent days, Ukrainian naval forces have launched missile attacks on two major Russian energy facilities — the Orlovsk Thermal Power Plant and the Novobryanskaya Substation.

Ukrainian officials said both facilities provided electricity to companies associated with Russia’s defence industry.

By Tamilla Hasanova