Russia has released a video that claims to show the crew members of the Moskva warship, the first time any sailors from the ship have been seen since its sinking, according to the BBC. The Moskva, the flagship of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, was hit by two Ukrainian missiles before it sank, the Pentagon said.
The video released by Russia shows the captain of the doomed ship, who was said to have been killed. Further, Russian naval chief Admiral Nikolay Yevmenov is seen addressing the seamen and naval officers in the video.
The 26-second soundless footage shows approximately 120 sailors and officers standing in attention in uniform. It has been posted on the Facebook page of the Russian Defence Ministry.
“Commander-in-Chief of the Navy Admiral Nikolai Evmenov and the command of the Black Sea Fleet held a meeting with the crew of the missile cruiser ‘Moskva' in Sevastopol,” according to a translation of the video's caption by New York Post.
“The traditions of the Guards missile cruiser ‘Moskva' will be carefully preserved and continued, as it has always been accepted in the Navy,” the text of the Facebook post further says.
Russia had claimed that Moskva went down as it was being towed to port after a fire broke out on board. But Kyiv claimed the ship was hit by two Neptune missiles fired by Ukraine which killed the entire 500-strong crew.
The Pentagon called it a “big blow” for Moscow.
The missile cruiser had been leading Russia's naval effort in the seven-week conflict in Ukraine, playing a central role in the siege of the port city of Mariupol.
Dozens of people gathered in the Crimean city of Sevastopol on Friday to mourn the sinking of Moskva. Some embraced and others laid flowers in memory of the warship at a monument to the 1696 foundation of the Russian navy in the centre of Sevastopol, headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet.
