Following an explosion that a Ukrainian official said was caused by a missile strike, Russia stated on Thursday that the flagship of its Black Sea fleet had been severely damaged and her personnel had been evacuated.
According to Interfax news agency, a fire on the Moskva missile cruiser caused munitions to explode up, according to Russia’s defence ministry.
The origin of the fire was not stated, but Maksym Marchenko, the Ukrainian governor of the territory surrounding the Black Sea port of Odesa, reported the Moskva was hit by two Ukrainian-made Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles.
In a web statement, he stated that ‘Neptune missiles guarding the Black Sea did quite catastrophic damage.’
Reuters was unable to verify either side’s assertions after contacting Ukraine’s defence ministry for comment.
The Moskva is the second large ship to have sustained significant damage since the war began. Ukraine announced last month that it had sunk the Orsk, a landing support ship, in the smaller Sea of Azov.
Russia’s navy has fired cruise missiles into Ukraine, and its Black Sea operations are critical in aiding land operations in Ukraine’s south and east.
The Moskva, which was commissioned in 1983, was claimed to be armed with 16 anti-ship ‘Vulkan’ cruise missiles with a range of at least 700 kilometres, according to Russian news sources (440 miles).
Russia was stepping up its efforts in the south and east as it attempted to take full control of the beleaguered port of Mariupol, Ukraine warned.
Russia announced that 1,026 soldiers from Ukraine’s 36th Marine Brigade had surrendered in Mariupol, including 162 officers, and that the city was now entirely under its control.
Capturing the industrial sector of Azovstal, where the marines have been holed up, would give Russia control of Ukraine’s important Sea of Azov port, strengthen a southern land route, and deepen its occupation of the country’s east.
Russian forces were attacking Azovstal and the port, according to Ukraine’s general staff, but a spokesman for the defence ministry said he had no knowledge about any capitulation.
‘Russian forces are escalating their efforts on the southern and eastern fronts, aiming to avenge their setbacks,’ said President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in a video address on Wednesday night.
On Tuesday, Reuters journalists accompanying Russian-backed separatists saw fires blazing from the Azovstal area, a day after the 36th Marine Brigade of Ukraine announced that its forces had run out of ammo.
On Wednesday, the US announced that it would deliver an additional $800 million in military gear to Ukraine, including artillery, armoured personnel vehicles, and helicopters. More money has also been offered by France and Germany.
According to a source familiar with the issue, senior US officials are debating whether to send a top cabinet member to Kyiv, such as Secretary of State Antony Blinken or Defense Secretary Austin Lloyd, as a show of solidarity.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov warned the TASS news agency that US and NATO vehicles moving armaments on Ukrainian territory will be considered acceptable military targets.
After Washington targeted 328 members of Russia’s lower house of parliament, it would slap tit-for-tat penalties on 398 members of the US House of Representatives and 87 Canadian senators, according to Interfax.
The United Kingdom has declared fresh financial sanctions against separatists.
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