Guardian – Russia has said it will pull out of a UN-brokered grain export deal after a dramatic attack by Ukrainian airborne and underwater drones on its Black Sea naval base of Sevastopol in the early hours of Saturday morning.

War Zone – Russia says Ukrainian aerial drones and unmanned surface vessels targeted the home of its Black Sea Fleet, damaging at least a minesweeper.

USNI News – A small, unmanned watercraft of unknown origin washed up from the Black Sea on the shore of Crimea, near Russia’s naval base in Sevastopol, late last month.

Naval News – A previously unreported drone boat, known as a USV (uncrewed surface vessel), appears to have slipped past Russian Navy patrols. The device was found on a beach close to the major Russian Navy base of Sevastopol in Crimea.

War Zone – A Pentagon official explained how the U.S. helped turn ship-based Harpoons into truck-based weapons used by Ukraine to sink two Russian ships.

Naval News – The UK is giving underwater drones to Ukraine and training Ukrainian personnel in Britain to use them to clear their coastline of mines.

War Zone – Despite Ukrainian denials from some quarters, officials in Moscow say that the drone strike was launched from within Russia-held territory.

BBC – The first ship carrying grain has left a Ukrainian port under a landmark deal with Russia.

USNI News – Ukraine still faces hurdles in grain exportation despite an agreement with Russia, brokered by Turkey and the United Nations, to allow shipments of the food stuff to leave the country.

Articles of War – On June 17, Ukrainian forces successfully used a U.S.-supplied Harpoon anti-ship cruise missile to attack and sink a Russian resupply ship that “almost certainly” carried weapons and reinforcements bound for Snake Island in the Black Sea. Two weeks later, on June 30, Russian troops evacuated the small outpost. Moscow had claimed the retreat from Snake Island was a “gesture of goodwill” in advance of recognizing a humanitarian corridor to permit the safe export of grain from Ukraine. But Ukraine said the Russians were forced out as their position on the barren rock had become untenable without logistical support. Ukraine raised its flag on Snake Island on July 4.

Naval News – Russia’s navy is, by any measure, more powerful than Ukraine’s. But the war is not going all their way. At sea, the Russian Navy is finding itself retreating from a large swathe of the Black Sea.

Navy Lookout – Before Russia invaded Ukraine it was considered the ‘breadbasket of Europe’ responsible for about 13% of global grain exports. Russia’s blockade of the Black Sea is preventing this grain from reaching markets all over the world causing global food shortages and price hikes. Various politicians have called for naval intervention and here we look at the situation and the options for resolving this crisis.

USNI News – Ukrainian forces used a Harpoon missile to sink a Russian resupply ship headed to Snake Island.

War Zone – Following heavy Ukrainian bombardment, Russian forces have now performed a “tactical withdrawal” from the strategic outpost in the Black Sea.

USNI News – The 18 patrol boats being sent to Ukraine as part of additional aid announced Thursday will be used to monitor and protect Ukraine’s rivers.

War Zone – The northwestern Black Sea is becoming more of a free-fire zone with each passing day and it will only become more-so as new weapons arrive.

Naval News – Ukrainian Armed Forces struck the Russian Navy’s project 22870 Rescue Tug, Vasily Bekh (SB-739), with two anti-ship missiles while the ship was en route to the Snake Island on June 17, 2022.

USNI News – The United States will be sending two vehicle-mounted anti-ship missile platforms to Ukraine as part of a new $1 billion military aid package to Kyiv.

Naval News – The Ukrainian grain crisis continues as a result of Russia’s blockade of Black Sea ports, which prevents Ukrainian wheat shipments. As the war continues, the stocks of countries that rely on Ukraine for wheat are diminishing. A possible famine is looming. Everyone agrees on the necessity to solve this problem to avoid a major humanitarian crisis. But how?

USNI News – Ukrainian forces have deployed Harpoon anti-ship missiles to the Black Sea as a counter to Russian surface ships in the region, Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov said.

War Zone – Even if a deal is reached to allow grain shipments from Ukraine, sea mines could make doing so impossible for months.

War Zone – The Robot 17 system will provide Ukraine with a survivable short-range coastal defense capability.

USNI News – The Danish Armed Forces are sending long-range anti-ship missiles to Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told reporters on Monday. The range of Denmark’s coastal defense Harpoons could put Russian ships at risk in the Northern Black Sea.

Naval News – The Ukrainian Navy’s investment in the Bayraktar TB2 drone is paying off. Russia enjoys a complete technological and numerical advantage. Yet its navy is proving easy prey to the small, slow and lightly armed UAV.

War Zone – The Ukrainian military claims to have used its Turkish-supplied TB2 drones to destroy a pair of Russian patrol craft in the Black Sea.