Russia's defence ministry said the flagship of its Black Sea Fleet, a Moskva missile cruiser, was on fire on Thursday and has been badly damaged after ammunition on board was blown up as a result. Ukraine has taken responsibility for the incident, claiming it hit the 12,500 tonne ship with two anti-ship missiles.
According to Sky News, there was no evidence provided for this, but Odesa's governor Maksim Marchenko said on Telegram: "It has been confirmed that the missile cruiser Moscow today went exactly where it was sent by our border guards on Snake Island! Neptune missiles guarding the Black Sea caused very serious damage to the Russian ship. Glory to Ukraine!"
In comments reported by the Tass news agency, Russia's defence ministry said: "As a result of a fire on the Moskva missile cruiser, ammunition detonated." The statement did not confirm what had caused the initial fire. The incident is still under investigation, but it has been confirmed that the 500-strong crew had all been saved.
