“It was Russia that launched an unprovoked war on foreign territory, with indiscriminate mass killings and large-scale destruction of civilian infrastructure,” Podoliak wrote on Twitter. “Therefore, any retaliatory actions by Ukraine are absolutely justified, both morally and legally.” So far, Ukraine has always denied responsibility for military strikes on Russian territory and has spoken of Russian false reports.
In the case of the missile cruiser “Moskva” it was the other way around. While Ukraine claimed to have sunk the 186-meter-long ship with two anti-ship missiles, Moscow spoke of detonated ammunition and a sinking in heavy seas as a result of an attempt to tow it. However, anti-ship missiles are also being manufactured at the Kiev missile factory hit on Friday.
Ukraine expected further acts of retaliation. “The attack on the cruiser Moskva hit not only the ship itself, but also the imperial ambitions of the enemy,” a spokeswoman for Ukraine’s Southern Armed Forces said on Friday. “We are all aware that we will not be forgiven for this. We are aware that the attacks once morest us will increase and that the enemy will take revenge. We understand that,” the spokeswoman referred to attacks on the southern Ukrainian cities of Odessa and Mykolayiv.
Meanwhile, Russia says it has taken complete control of one of the last bastions of the defenders in the city of Mariupol on the Azov Sea, the Ilyich steelworks. According to Ukrainian sources, however, the fighting for the steelworks continues. There are active street fights in these areas, says a spokesman for the Ministry of Defense.
After the attack on the missile factory near Kyiv, Russia announced further attacks on the Ukrainian capital. The attack in Kyiv was justified by the Russian Defense Ministry as retaliation for alleged Ukrainian attacks on Russian territory, several of which the Russian authorities reported on Thursday. Ukraine reportedly fired at least three rockets at an ammunition depot in the city of Belgorod on March 29. In early April, the government in Kyiv rejected Russian accusations that it was responsible for a major fire at a fuel depot near the city.
The missile cruiser “Moskva” sank in the Black Sea seven weeks following the start of the war. The missile cruiser had previously been badly damaged. There was still disagreement on Friday as to whether the flagship was hit by Ukrainian “Neptun” missiles or – as the Russian side claims – damaged by ammunition detonation. The US joined the Ukrainian interpretation on Friday. A top US official said the ship sank following two Ukrainian missile hits.
According to the Russian account, a fire broke out on the ship due to an ammunition explosion, which is why it had to be towed. The ship sank in stormy seas. International military experts doubted the representation and pointed out on Friday that the wind in the affected region was not that strong on Thursday. With the “Moskva”, the Russian Black Sea Fleet loses a lot of firepower, and the remaining ships become an easier target for shore batteries. The ship also had great symbolic importance, for example for meetings between Putin and important state guests.
As of Friday, the Russian Defense Ministry did not say whether the sinking of the “Moskva” claimed any lives. Moscow said the crew had been taken to other Black Sea Fleet ships in the area following a fire. US Department of Defense spokesman John Kirby told CNN that it was “probable” that there were fatalities and injuries in the incident. Up to 500 soldiers were on board.
After withdrawing from the Kyiv region, Russia says it is concentrating on bringing the Donbass region under its control. There, pro-Russian separatists have controlled the areas around the cities of Luhansk and Donetsk since 2014. North of the particularly embattled city of Mariupol on the Sea of Azov, Ukraine reported successes that might not be independently verified.
Shelling on a residential area in the northern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Friday killed seven people and wounded 34 others, the region’s governor said on Friday. Five people died as a result of Russian shelling in the city of Mykolaiv, the local governor said. He claimed that cluster munitions were also used. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk announced on Friday followingnoon that 2,864 people, including 363 people from Mariupol, were taken through humanitarian corridors from embattled cities.
Russia’s goal is the complete conquest of Mariupol. According to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, Russia used long-range bombers to attack the city for the first time since the invasion began. Ukraine, meanwhile, tried to break the siege ring through the city.
