The United Kingdom announced on Saturday that it would donate six underwater drones to Ukraine to help neutralize Russian mines off its coast and train Ukrainian soldiers in their use.
These “lightweight, self-contained devices are designed for use in shallow coastal areas, capable of operating 100 meters below sea level, detecting, identifying and identifying mines (…) so the Navy of Ukraine neutralizes them,” Ministry of Defense (MoD) said in a statement.
From the same source, “dozens of members of the Ukrainian Navy will be trained to use these drones in the next few months, with the first of them having already started training”. Trainings are provided by the United Kingdom and the United States.
The new military aid comes as “Russia is weaponizing food by destroying Ukrainian agriculture and imposing a blockade on the country’s ports on the Black Sea to block exports,” according to the MoD.
While some ships carrying grain were able to leave Ukraine under a UN-brokered deal, the UK said these operations were “restricted by underwater mines left by Russian forces along the coast” in the country.
In May, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced 300 million pounds (355 million euros) in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, after an earlier plan of 450 million pounds, including the provision of missiles.
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