MOSCOW: A Russian warship that was damaged by an explosion has sunk, Russia’s defense ministry has said.
Moskva, the flagship of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet, was being towed to port when “stormy seas” caused it to sink, according to a ministry message.
The 510-crew missile cruiser was a symbol of Russia’s military power, leading its naval assault on Ukraine, BBC reported.
Kyiv says its missiles hit the warship. Moscow has not reported any attack. It says the vessel sank after a fire.
The blaze caused the explosion of the warship’s ammunition, Russia says, adding that the entire crew were later evacuated to nearby Russian vessels in the Black Sea. It provided no further details, the report said.
After saying initially the warship was afloat, late on Thursday Russian state media broke the news that the Moskva had been lost.
“While being towed… towards the destined port, the vessel lost its balance due to damage sustained in the hull as fire broke out after ammunition exploded. Given the choppy seas, the vessel sank,” state news agency Tass quoted the Russian defence ministry as saying.
Ukrainian military officials said they struck the Moskva with Ukrainian-made Neptune missiles – a weapon designed after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, and the naval threat to Ukraine in the Black Sea grew.
A senior Ukrainian official said as many as 510 crew could have been on board the Moskva.
(Inputs from BBC)
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