Video: Ukraine Obliterates Russia's $60 Million Warship in Black Sea, 40 Sailors on Board

Crimea – Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, the Ukrainian military intelligence said that it sank a Russian warship in the Black Sea off the coast of the Crimean peninsula on Thursday. In the latest attack, Russia’s guided missile ship, the “Ivanovets" suffered multiple hits to its hull before it sank overnight in the harbour of Lake Donuzlav, CNN reported. The intelligence body also shared the video from the incident in which the Russian warship can be seen getting attacked and sinking eventually. “Ukrainian naval drones are proving to be extremely effective," Kyiv's Defense Intelligence spokesperson told Kyiv Post. 

Shortly after the attack, the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine informed that up to 40 Russian sailors could have been on board when the vessel was attacked by the Ukrainian drones. "Shipwreck of the day! Warriors of the special unit "Group 13" of the @DI_Ukraine destroyed the missile corvette "Ivanovets" of the Russian Black Sea Fleet," the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence wrote on X, formally known as Twitter. “As a result of a number of direct hits to the hull, the corvette was damaged, rolled to the stern, and sank. The value of the ship is approximately $60–70 million. Nice job, warriors!” the ministry furthered. Meanwhile, the Russian Defence Ministry and Kremlin are yet to release a formal statement on the matter.

Ukraine focuses on Crimea

It is important to note that the strike on the Russian vessel came hours after Ukrainian forces launched a barrage of missiles in the Crimean peninsula. The Ukrainian Air Force Commander described the attack as a part of “the cleansing of Crimea from the Russian presence.” The Crimean peninsula has been a matter of dispute between Russia and Ukraine after  Moscow annexed it in 2014.  On Wednesday, Ukraine launched 20 airborne guided missiles at Crimea, with Russian air defences destroying 17 of them over the Black Sea and three more over the peninsula, CNN reported. “Our military repelled a massive attack on Sevastopol,” the Russia-appointed governor of the city Mikhail Razvozhaev said shortly after the attack. 

Razvozhaev mentioned that dozens of buildings were hit in the attack which resulted in broken windows and other damages. However, the Russian authorities did not report any casualties in the Wednesday attack. The strikes came amid growing speculations that the Zelenskyy administration mulling to fire the Commander-in-Chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, General Valerii Zaluzhnyi. Tensions between the Ukrainian president and Zaluzhnyi have been widely reported as the differences in their approach towards the Russia-Ukraine war stir headlines.