Russian Drones Destroy Estonia-Built Ukrainian Rescue Boats in Black Sea
Two Ukrainian rescue vessels built at the Baltic Workboats shipyard in Estonia were hit by Russian drones last week while operating in the Black Sea's grain corridor.
Last week, two Ukrainian rescue boats built at the Baltic Workboats shipyard were struck in the Black Sea while participating in securing Ukraine's grain corridor, according to Saarte Hääl.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba stated on June 6 that Russian forces attacked two boats of Ukraine's maritime search and rescue service in the Ukrainian maritime corridor. Ukrainian Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk said the vessels were conducting search and rescue missions protected under international conventions, but Russian drone operators attacked them regardless.
Baltic Workboats project manager and former navy commander Jüri Saska noted that the shipyard has built four rescue vessels for Ukraine: two smaller ones over a decade ago and two larger, more modern vessels in 2024 and 2025. According to him, one older and one newer boat were hit, leaving essentially nothing to restore as the vessels have burned and been destroyed.
