Russian Missile Ship Suffers Crew Casualties in Baltic Drone Strike

Russia’s small missile ship Naro-Fominsk was struck by multiple drones in the Baltic Sea, leaving crew members killed and wounded and forcing the vessel to rely on an escort ship to reach St. Petersburg, Estonian Defense Forces Deputy Division Commander Col. Aron Kalmus said during a Defense Ministry briefing. “It was hit by a significant number of drones. We know quite accurately how many. I will not go into details, because I would not want to make the enemy’s job easier by showing what and how we see,” Kalmus said, according to Estonian public broadcaster ERR.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “However, more than one drone hit it, which for the military would be an accident. More than two, which would be a coincidence. And more than three, which for the military would already be a pattern.” Kalmus noted that the vessel initially began moving toward St. Petersburg under its own power after sustaining damage, but later stopped and required an additional escort vessel to continue its transit. Baltic Sea drone operation The strike took place during a coordinated Ukrainian drone operation overnight on Nov. 11 targeting Russia’s key Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga, located roughly 110 kilometers (70 miles) west of St. Petersburg near the Estonian border. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) reported that its Alpha Special Operations Center drones hit the Project 21631 Buyan-M-class corvette Naro-Fominsk – a warship commissioned in 2022 capable of launching Kalibr and Oniks cruise missiles – alongside oil storage and port facilities. Other Topics of Interest Ukrainian forces have struck the Samara oil station where Urals export crude is blended and hit command, fuel, and maintenance sites at Lipetsk-2 airbase, the AFU said on Saturday. According to the SBU and the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), the overnight attack damaged five petroleum storage tanks with a combined capacity of 150,000 cubic meters (about 943,000 barrels), sparking major fires at the Novatek-Ust-Luga and Ust-Luga Oil terminals, as well as the Luzhskaya railway station. Ust-Luga is one of Russia’s primary export hubs, accounting alongside Primorsk for roughly 40 percent of Russia’s seaborne oil exports. Ukraine has targeted the port facility at least six times in 2026 alone. Ukraine has targeted Ust-Luga since at least January 2024, when the SBU struck the Novatek gas terminal. On Aug. 14, Ukraine attacked the port with 54 drones, marking it at least the sixth such attack in 2026 alone. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.