Kremlin admits Russian warship 'Moskva' has sunk after massive explosion

Amid the Russia-led invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin on April 15 admitted that one of its warships namely 'Moskva' has sunk in the Black sea while being towed. It was reported that the missile cruiser that headed for warfare was adversely impacted following a storm. Snubbing reports that denied this mishap, the following day Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave an extensive and almost poetic listing of the many ways by which Ukrainians helped to fend off the Russian troops, including “those who showed that Russian warships can sail away, even if it’s to the bottom” of the sea.

It was a reference to the Russian sunken missile cruiser Moskva.

"During the towing of the Moskva cruiser to the designation port, the ship lost stability due to hull damage, sustained during the detonation of ammunition because of a fire. Amid the heavy storm, the ship sank," the Russian Defence Ministry reportedly said, as per news agency TASS.

The Russian Defence Ministry enumerated that the warship caught massive fire and was severely damaged following the detonation of ammunition.

"Ammunition on board detonated as a result of a fire. The vessel is seriously damaged. The entire crew have been evacuated. The cause of the blaze is being investigated," read a statement.

Russia's Moskva warship sinks in Black Sea

Moskva, the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, was declared nonfunctioning and out of sight after catching massive fire. While all crew members were said to be safely evacuated, the cause of the alleged fire remained unknown.

"As a result of the fire that hit the Moskva missile cruiser, the ammunition has detonated. The ship has been seriously damaged," TASS reported the Ministry's statement.

The ship, whose initial name was "Slava," was laid down in 1976 in Mykolaiv and commissioned in 1983, the news agency further reported. According to Russia, the Moskva is a missile cruiser that was built and commissioned in 1982. Notably, Odesa region Governor Maksym Marchenko has said Ukrainian forces struck the guided-missile cruiser Moskva with two "Neptune" missiles that caused serious damage.

Ukrainian President asks citizens to 'be proud'

In his address, Zelenskyy noted the zeal of Ukrainians to combat Kremlin forces and referred to the Russian sunken missile cruiser as his country's triumph. He told Ukrainians they should be proud of having survived 50 days under Russian attack when the Russians “gave us a maximum of five.”

Zelenskyy called it “an achievement of millions of Ukrainians, of everyone who on February 24 made the most important decision of their life – to fight.”

Zelenskyy further said he remembered the first day of the invasion when many world leaders, unsure whether Ukraine would survive, advised him to flee his homeland.

"No one will stop Russia except Ukraine with heavy weapons," he added in his address to Ukrainians.