Six Russian landing ships crossed the North Sea alongside Britain, raising speculations that this movement is part of an imminent invasion plan for Ukraine, according to British media reports on Thursday. The British newspaper "Daily Mail" reported that ships from the Russian Baltic fleet headed south, bypassing the United Kingdom, followed by other ships from the Northern fleet. The Russian Navy deployed these ships three days ago, but it remains unclear if they are heading toward Ukraine. Each of the Russian landing vessels can carry 25 armored personnel carriers. If these ships are to participate in any hypothetical military operation against Ukraine, they would need to travel a long distance to reach the Black Sea, which borders Ukraine.
Western reports suggest that Russia, which has amassed a large number of troops at the Ukrainian border, is preparing to invade in late January or early February. However, Moscow denies these allegations, claiming that its military movements pose no threat to anyone. The Russian naval movements heighten the belief that war in Ukraine is imminent.
Further increasing Western concerns is the fact that Moscow conducted simultaneous aerial maneuvers involving Sukhoi-25 fighter jets in three different regions of Russia while the warships were moving. During these exercises, which included 500 military personnel, the air force targeted hypothetical objectives. In the Black Sea, the anti-submarine ship Kasimov succeeded in "destroying" aerial and maritime targets using artillery fire in stormy conditions during a naval drill.
