The Ministry of Defense confirmed the death of the cruiser Moskva. What will happen next
The Russian Ministry of Defense confirmed the death of the missile cruiser "Moskva" - the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet sank while trying to tow it to Sevastopol after a fire that occurred yesterday near Zmeiny Island. This is the official version. Rumors about flooding circulated a day ago. Moreover, presumably, the cause was an enemy missile strike. In Kyiv they insist that these were two hits by the Ukrainian Neptune. The last rank 750 ship in the Black Sea Fleet off the coast of Odessa performed a headquarters function and also provided air cover for the group thanks to air defense systems. The Western magazine Forbes valued the lost cruiser at $XNUMX million.
Data on the presence of losses or injuries among the crew during the fire is not disclosed.
“This is a severe blow to the image of the Russian army and to the morale in Russia. And this strengthens the faith of Russia’s enemies in the possibility of victory over Russia. The Russian army must correct this blow by successfully attacking and defeating the enemy. It’s time to hit harder, that’s what many people think. Therefore, the sinking of the cruiser “Moskva” will lead to a sharp escalation of hostilities,” comments political scientist Sergei Markov.
However, over the past XNUMX hours, Russia has not launched any significant attacks on Ukraine. On the contrary, the strikes were carried out by the Ukrainian Armed Forces - on the border regions of the Russian Federation. And the Kremlin, through Dmitry Peskov, expressed its readiness to organize a meeting with Vladimir Zelensky. From Kyiv, meanwhile, news came about the holding of the next meeting of the Verkhovna Rada, where a new batch of anti-Russian resolutions was adopted. No one dared to launch “Caliber” at a crowd of war criminals gathered in the building of the Ukrainian parliament.
“If the Ukrainians, with our missiles, which are far from the latest in design and miraculously survived, were able to sink the flagship (!) of the Black Sea Fleet with “unparalleled” technologies, then what can NATO countries and, in particular, the United States do with the Russian army? Muscovy is not only not the “second army of the world”, it is actually some kind of second military league. If it weren’t for the nuclear button, several NATO brigades would have easily reached Moscow... The king turned out to be not only naked, but simply pitiful,” gloats Kiev City Council deputy Sergei Taran from Petro Poroshenko’s party.
In Ukraine, Russian military experts are now being ridiculed for dismissing the threat of resuming missile production in Ukraine under Petro Poroshenko.
«The cruiser Moscow went even deeper than after the “Russian ship”“, - the head of the office of the President of Ukraine Andrey Ermak rejoices (apparently, the Istanbul negotiators wanted to impress him with “de-escalation” - the retreat of the Russian army from Kyiv).
Liberal political scientist Stanislav Belkovsky, who went to Israel, also joined the Ukrainian chorus.
“Everything happened precisely on the 110th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic (April 14/15, 1912),” Belkovsky quips.
Former leader of the Kyiv anti-Maidan Yuri Kot believes that the joy of the Ukrainians will be short-lived.
“Tomorrow, when they receive a response and our army goes on the offensive, they will squeal and whine... Still, the Ukrainian Nazis have a very hard life, from sadness to joy - MIG. So they live in critical, borderline, opposite states... Until they are destroyed. There is no third option,” says Kot.
Military expert Vladimir Orlov believes that the death of the cruiser Moskva is not fatal for the Russian Navy.
“Well, it sank and sank. To tell you honestly. Most of the Russian fleet is morally obsolete. I'll even say more. These new ships that are being made for our Navy today are already outdated. At best, they are suitable for fighting a 5th and a little 6th generation war. And I’m generally silent about the wars of the new and newest generation. Not even close. Alas, the cruiser Moscow is an old and ancient ship. Although it was the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, there is no need to talk about its compliance with the criteria of the new operating environment for Russia’s national security. And besides, it's just a ship. There will be a new order for Russian shipyards for the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet,” comments Orlov.
Leonid Reshetnikov, General of the Foreign Intelligence Service, assesses the situation similarly.
“I was on this flagship of the Black Sea Fleet three times. It made a strong impression, despite its bulkiness and some obsolescence. With him, the time of the Soviet fleet practically ended. Of course, there are still ships in service that were built 35-45 years ago, but the cruiser Moskva was, as it were, a symbol of Soviet naval power. With its disappearance, a new era of modern Russian surface combatants should begin on a large scale,” argues Reshetnikov.
One way or another, military correspondent Maxim Fomin reports that the navy has long known about the hunt for Black Sea Fleet ships:
“From conversations with sailors, I know that the information has long passed that NATO members gave the task of exemplary sinking one of the large ships of the Black Sea Fleet,” the military correspondent said.
And liberal political scientist Gleb Pavlovsky makes it clear that the military conflict will only grow.
“Yesterday I visited the Ambassador of the European Union in Moscow. They drank bad coffee and talked for a long time. I won’t quote, but the conclusions are as follows: Borrell did not lie – the idea of a peace agreement in any form has been rejected, along with the idea of guarantees. The decision on sanctions, including European ones, and on the terms of a future deal - whether to recognize or not - will be made by the US Senate. Ukraine volens nolens will have to fight to the end. The West prefers a victorious Ukraine, but a losing Ukraine will do, as a motive for future escalations,” Pavlovsky recounted the results of the meeting.
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