The size of the breach did not match that of a conventional torpedo, but was consistent with a strike by a supercavitating armor-piercing torpedo with a small or no warhead.
Spanish authorities do not rule out the possibility that the interference was intended to disrupt a covert delivery of nuclear technology to Kim’s regime.”
Hmmm. So who exactly was supposed to have, and choose to use, a supercavitating torpedo on an incapacitated target?
Are we to suppose that Russia[1] equips its landing ships with these? In the very unlikely case that the landing ship just happened to have such a thing on board - and even less likely - a 21 inch torpedo tube from which to launch it, why would anyone use such an expensive device when low tech scuttling charges would be just as effective?
[1] Iran also has some, procured from Russia, but it's hard to see their involvement in this.
I think you have misread. The implication appears to be that the ship was sunk by a torpedo fired by a non-Russian enemy. The Russian landing ship cleaned up sometime afterwards.
Why someone would think the Russians were sending sensitive military equipment from St Petersburg to Vladivostok via the Mediterranean, rather than internally, is a bit of a mystery to me.
The Russians have had a supercavitating torpedo (Shkval) for some time, but no other country appears to have developed such a weapon. Iran is said to have a few which were supplied by Russia.
It’s a route used by Russia’s ghost fleet. This could have been because of plausible deniability, as there are restrictions on supplying nuclear technology to North Korea. And the whole exercise could be put down to a false flag operation (Why would we sink our own ship?).
It’s all a bit murky…
Well the Russian winter is a force to be reckoned with, as are the (partisan?) groups operating as saboteurs inside Russia.
If they decided to ship it, the arctic route is closed, and the shortest way is via the Suez canal, otherwise.
It's not an impossible decision given the shambolic nature of Russia,.
A non-Russian enemy which uses supercavitating torpedos[1] AND selects this particular weapon to sink a defenseless merchant ship? I don't buy that.
The only nations known to have these weapons are Russia, Iran (bought from Russia) and Germany. I don't count Iran and Germany as serious contenders, and can't quite see why Russia would choose to use one here.
P.S. Most modern torpedos (Non-supercavitating) are designed to not hit a ship, but to detonate under the ship's keel. They do more damage that way.
Some items are really too big for road & rail. Transport over land for such a huge distance becomes disruptive to other cargo, so transport by sea becomes the preferred option.
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