A Russian service member in the Kremlin’s Baltic Fleet with access to classified areas on a Moscow warship aided Kyiv’s Defense Forces in an undercover attack on the cruise missile vessel Serpukhov in early April as part of the HUR’s (Ukrainian Military Intelligence) Operation “Fisherman” [Rybalka].
“This operation came as a shock to the enemy, and the FSB was furious. Some heads dropped,” HUR representative Andriy Yusov said at a press conference dedicated to this operation.
On April 7, A Russian missile ship in the Kaliningrad region sustained heavy damage and caught fire after being hit in the HUR attack, a Kyiv Post source in Ukrainian intelligence said.
The Serpukhov was based at the Baltiysk Naval Base in Russia‘s westernmost region of Kaliningrad, sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania. It was formerly known as Königsberg until Soviet annexation in 1946.
During a press conference, a Russian citizen, a sailor of the Serpukhov with the call sign “Goga,” revealed he was the only crew member against the war with Ukraine. When he attempted to resign, his commander referred him to a psychologist, and the information was reported to the FSB and the Russian Prosecutor‘s Office.
After serving 11 years in the Russian armed forces, Goga received only a warning and returned to the ship after undergoing tests.
In 2023, he joined the resistance forces of the Legion “Freedom of Russia.” During Operation Rybalka, he took secret documents, set fire to the ship, and escaped. Currently, he is in Ukraine and a member of the Legion “Freedom of Russia.”
The Serpukhov of Project 21631 “Buyan-M,” launched in 2015, is one of the most modern missile boats in the Russian Navy and a launch platform for Oniks and Kalibr missiles used against Ukraine.