Russian missile corvette deployed to Caspian Sea raises Ukraine threat
The missile corvette Amur, which the Russians withdrew from the Black Sea, has started service in the Caspian Sea. This change does not solve all the problems for Ukrainians, as it is a vessel equipped with long-range weapons capable of striking targets in Ukraine from over 1,000 kilometres.
As the Ukrainian military-focused portal Defence Express reported, the missile corvette Amur has been incorporated into the Caspian Flotilla. It has served in the Caspian Sea since 25 August, Greenwich Time.
A dangerous Russian vessel. It can carry cruise missiles
It should be noted that the missile corvette Amur belongs to the Project 22800 "Karakurt" ships. From the perspective of Ukrainians, the most important feature of this vessel is its adaptation to carry Kalibr-NK cruise missiles with a range of up to 1,500 kilometres. Such missiles launched from ships in the Caspian Sea can still reach within half of Ukraine, roughly up to the line marked by Kyiv.
Amur significantly enhances the strike power of the Caspian Flotilla. The fourth vessel in its service can carry Kalibr-NK cruise missiles. During a single attack, the Russians can launch up to 32 such missiles (the missile corvette Amur has space for eight). Defence Express recalls that the Caspian Flotilla has participated several times in missile attacks on Ukraine, the first time at the very beginning of the full-scale invasion and most recently in July this year.
Problems of Russian vessels
The Ukrainian portal also highlights that Amur has an interesting history. It was built in Kerch, a city on the Black Sea coast east of the Crimean Peninsula. The original plans envisaged it would join the Black Sea Fleet, which has suffered very large losses in recent months due to Ukrainian actions. As a result, Russian authorities even decided to relocate the main base of the Black Sea Fleet from occupied Sevastopol to Novorossiysk.
Like other Project 22800 "Karakurt" ships, Amur measures 67 metres in length and 11 metres in width. Its displacement is around 900 metric tonnes, and its maximum speed is 65 kilometres per hour. The full crew consists of 39 people. In addition to Kalibr-NK cruise missiles, its armament includes a 76-millimetre gun, a naval "Pantsir-M" air defence system, and 12.7-millimetre machine guns.
