On December 26, Ukraine attacked a major Russian warship, Novocherkassk, using its weaponry in the Black Sea. This attack comes as a major gain for Ukraine, which is struggling to defend its territorial lines on the ground against Russia’s invasion. Both countries have acknowledged this attack.
However, even in this attack, both countries have their own different versions of the story to tell the world. This comes as no surprise, as in this ongoing 22-month-long conflict, both Russia and Ukraine have often exaggerated the gains and losses they claim to have inflicted upon each other.
Ukraine’s side of the story on the attack on the major Russian warship, Novocherkassk, in the Black Sea:
Image Credit : Reuters
Ukraine has claimed that it has destroyed the Russian landing ship ‘Novocherkassk.’ As proof, unverified social media videos claiming to have captured this strike have been posted online. In all these videos, one can see that a vast explosion is taking place and that ballooning flames are lighting up the night sky.
Ukraine has stated that they have attacked this Russian landing warship with the help of cruise missiles as a major part of their attack on Russia in the Black Sea. It has been reported that this attack has killed at least one person and injured several others. This attack is believed to be a warning reply by Ukraine to Russia in case it attempts to capture any more Ukrainian territory along the Black Sea coast.
Ukraine has not specified what kind of cruise missiles were used in this attack. It is being believed that these could be the missiles that Britain and France have supplied to Kyiv.
Russia’s warship ‘Novocherkassk’, was built in Poland and entered service in the late 1980s. It had been designed for amphibious landings and was also capable of carrying various types of armoured vehicles, which included tanks.
Ukrainian Air Force Spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat has stated that he believes that it would be hard for the Novocherkassk to re-enter service ever again. He further said that it can be seen how powerful the explosion was and said that given the estimate of what the detonation could have been like, this ship is highly unlikely to be in a functional form.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a statement that he was “grateful” to the country’s air force for its impressive replenishment of the Russian submarine Black Sea fleet along with another vessel. Here, he is referring to other Russian ships that have been sunk during the war. Zelensky has also said that the Russian occupiers will not have a single peaceful place in Ukraine.
Ukraine’s air force commander, Mykola Oleshchuk, has said that due to the Air Force pilots and everyone else involved in this ongoing war, the Russian fleet is getting smaller every day.
Russia’s side of the story on the attack on the major Russian warship, Novocherkassk, in the Black Sea:
Image Credit: Reuters
The Russian defence ministry, in its report, has given a different story about Ukraine’s attack on its warship. It has been stated that the ship was damaged after Kyiv launched air-launched missiles to attack the Crimean port in Feodosia.
Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed governor of Crimea, has mentioned that one person was killed in this attack. The RIA news agency later reported that at least four people had been injured in the explosion. Footage posted by various Russian news outlets on Telegram also shows the detonation of powerful explosions and fire burning all around in what is believed to be the Crimean port of Russia.
Why does dominance in the Black Sea matter?
Image Credit: Wikipedia
The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea that is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, Russia, Turkey, and Ukraine. While these six countries have a coastline on this sea, its drainage basin includes parts of 24 countries across Europe.
Feodosia is a city with a population of about 69,000 people and lies on the southern coast of the Crimean Peninsula, near the Black Sea. It was annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014 and renamed Crimea, a move that Kyiv and the West have widely condemned as an illegal seizure. This area has been recognised as a strategically important territory on the Black Sea. In this ongoing war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made it clear that his armed forces are aiming to retake it.
Along with this, the Black Sea is the main export route for the agriculture and steel exports of Ukraine and has formed a significant part of the country’s economy. Throughout the war, Russia has been trying to impede Ukraine’s access to the Black Sea using its own fleet.
Though Ukraine does not have a significant navy, its campaign against Russia has periodically forced that country and its commanders to redeploy their ships away from its main naval base at Sevastopol to be safely out of missile range. As a result, this has re-established a viable shipping route for Kyiv’s exports, although not fully.
