Maritime episodes of the Russian ‘special operation’ against Ukraine

Maritime operations during Russia’s ‘special operation’ against Ukraine were complementary to land operations. However, they played an important role in the process of isolating the country and limiting its export capabilities. Pointing to selected naval episodes and showing their political, operational, and tactical context, we indicated several features demonstrating the new dimension of naval force operations and the possibility of using missile armament and air weapons to effectively counter surface ship combat teams. The purpose of the study is to show the essential elements of the naval operations conducted as part of the ‘special operation’ against Ukraine, to identify its essential features and transformations in the use of combat potential.