The government has adopted a resolution that will allow raising funds for the supply and maintenance of two mine countermeasures ships from Great Britain — "Cherkasy" and "Chernigiv". They are necessary for demining the Black Sea.
This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
In 2022, two Sandown-class ships were withdrawn from the British fleet and named "Cherkasy" and "Chernigiv", they took part in multinational exercises under the Ukrainian flag. The supply contract was concluded by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine and Great Britain.
In 2023, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense signed an agreement with a British company that maintains ships of the Royal Navy. Now the government will allocate money for modernization, maintenance, equipment and spare parts for the Cherkasy and Chernihiv mine countermeasure ships.
So far, ships cannot arrive in the waters of Ukraine — this is contrary to the Montreux Convention of 1936, which does not allow ships of belligerent countries to pass through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits.
"These ships are critically needed by Ukraine for demining the waters of the Black Sea after the end of a full-scale war, because they are modern anti-mine ships of this class," said the Commander of the Naval Forces of Ukraine, Oleksiy Neizhpapa.
He noted that experts of Ukraine and NATO estimate that the demining operation in the Black Sea will last from three to five years, and the recommended sea routes and places of parking of ships — up to six months. Without such ships, it may take longer.
Currently, the crews of "Cherkas" and "Chernihova" are undergoing training as part of the anti-mine forces. In particular, servicemen master the use of anti-mine weapons, tactical techniques and methods of demining water areas according to NATO standards.
The teams have completed the first stage of training of anti-mine ships and received positive evaluations based on the results of the certification of NATO specialists during the Joint Warrior 23-II exercises. In the future, servicemen will undergo intensive training for the actions of ships in any conditions — both individually and as part of a formation.
This year, Cherkasy and Chernihiv will participate in three international trainings. At the final stage, NATO experts will certify the ships for compatibility for operations as part of NATO ship mine countermeasure groups.
"Conclusion of relevant contracts is critically important. This will make it possible to form a mine countermeasures group in the Black Sea and avoid image losses for Ukraine in the eyes of a strategic partner," added Deputy Minister of Defense Yuriy Dzhigyr.
- Ships of the Sandown type are designed for demining sea mine barriers and mining sectors. They have a displacement of 450 tons, a length of 52.6 meters and a width of 10.5 meters. The speed of minesweepers of this type is up to 13 knots (24 km/h) on diesel traction and up to 6.5 on electric traction. The crew consists of 34 people, and three 12.7 mm machine guns are armed.