The United States will send 40 armored riverboats to Ukraine as part of its latest aid package. The riverboats are part of a $400 million aid package announced Friday. It is the second time the US has sent riverboats to Ukraine as part of ongoing aid in response to the Russian invasion. The aid package does not detail the type of ships the US is sending to Ukraine. Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh did not elaborate, but said how the riverboats are used is up to Ukrainian forces. The US previously sent 18 riverboats in June. Metal Shark sent six of these boats, USNI News previously reported. Six patrol boats are already operating in the Black Sea, Naval News reported. Also part of the package announced Friday are 45 refurbished T-72B tanks. On Friday, a Russian drone struck a Ukrainian Gyruza-M-class patrol boat, Naval News reported. The ship appeared to be hit by Lancet ammunition. While neither Russia nor Ukraine have provided details on where the Ukrainian patrol boat was operating, Naval News reported that it was likely in the Dnieper River. While Russia has the most technically capable navy, Ukrainian forces have managed to keep Moscow’s fleet in the Black Sea largely ineffective with threats of anti-ship missile attacks. In April, the Ukrainian Navy sank the Russian Black Sea flagship RTS Moskva (121) after hitting it with a pair of Neptune anti-ship missiles. On October 29, Russian ships operating near the Crimean peninsula were attacked by unmanned surface and aerial drones resulting in suspected damage to the guided missile frigate RTS Admiral Makarov and another ship.
