Russia Deploys Boom Defenses Around Crimea Bridge To Block Drone Strikes

Moscow has laid out floating, spiked boom defenses in the hope of fending off Ukrainian drone attacks in Crimea, according to Mash, a Russian news outlet known for sharing exclusive content sourced from Moscow security agencies. Booms are long barriers deployed on water that aim to stop surface drones getting close to their targets.

The booms are likely intended to make it more difficult for Ukrainian unmanned surface Surface Vehicles (USVs) to attack critical Russian infrastructure like bridges, according to Marina Miron, a post-doctoral researcher in the Department of War Studies at King's College London, U.K.

"What this tells us is that Russia is quite fast when it comes to adaptation," she told Newsweek, adding: "We have seen that the Russians are much better at defense than offensive operations."

Crimea, located to the south of mainland Ukraine, was annexed by Russia in 2014. Although Moscow's control of the territory is not internationally recognized, many Russian citizens now reside on or visit the peninsula, and Russia has a number of military bases in Crimea.

Russia has accused Ukraine of repeatedly targeting Crimea with surface and underwater drones, including zeroing in on Russia's Black Sea naval base at Sevastopol. Kyiv has vowed to regain control of the peninsula.

On July 17, Moscow said that two Ukrainian USVs had targeted the Kerch Bridge, linking Crimea to Russia. It is very difficult for Russia to protect the length of the bridge from Ukrainian surface drones, which are hard to detect until shortly before they reach their target, experts suggested to Newsweek at the time.

Analysts say Ukrainian attack USVs lie very close to the water, and with their small size, they are very difficult for Russian forces to spot visually or with radar and sonar. These systems are not designed to detect such small, uncrewed vehicles.

Boom defenses are physical barriers, similar to anti-submarine or anti-torpedo nets, which have been around for decades and were popular during World War II, according to U.K.-based drone expert, Steve Wright.

They could be used at the opening of a harbor or port, or even to protect specific assets, he told Newsweek.

Barriers such as booms force uncrewed surface vessels to navigate even after they break into the a harbor's outer perimeter, according to Sidharth Kaushal, a research fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute think tank.

"The need to circumvent barriers makes a USV move more slowly, facilitating engagement by other means," such as guns or helicopters, he told Newsweek.

And there are some indications these boom defenses could be working. "Russia's defenses around Sevastopol, including floating booms, seem to be fairly effective at protecting vessels when they are in harbor," Kaushal added.

Moscow's military is likely to maintain this type of defense in its Sevastopol base, Kaushal said, and may also put them in places such as Novorossiysk, another of its Black Sea naval bases. The Russian military could also choose to use them in Ukrainian ports occupied by Russian forces, such as Berdyansk in the Zaporizhzhia region, he said.

Russia is improving its defenses against the threat Ukraine's uncrewed surface vehicles pose, Kaushal said, although they continue to be a danger for Russian vessels once outside Moscow-controlled harbors.