Ukraine’s military has said it has destroyed a Russian landing ship stationed in the Crimean port city of Feodosia, with video footage showing an extensive fire in the port area.
The air force said it struck the Novocherkassk navy ship, which was stationed in Crimean waters controlled by Russia.
“And the fleet in Russia is getting smaller and smaller! Thanks to the air force pilots and everyone involved for the filigree work!” the commander of Ukraine’s air force, Mykola Oleshchuk, said on the Telegram messaging app.
Footage circulating on several Russian news outlets on Telegram showed powerful explosions and fires over a port area.
Russia’s defence ministry acknowledged via a statement that the Novocherkassk landing ship was “damaged” by Ukrainian guided missiles launched by aircraft, adding that one person was killed and two injured in the attack.
Earlier in the day, the Russia-appointed head of occupied Crimea, Sergey Aksyonov, said in a statement on Telegram that there had been “an enemy attack in [the] Feodosia area”, adding that “detonation has stopped and the fire has been localised”.
Moscow is believed to have already withdrawn a significant bulk of its Black Sea fleet from its main base in Crimea after a series of Ukrainian missile and drone strikes last autumn and summer.
In a separate statement on Monday, the Ukrainian military said it had shot down five Russian fighter jets in three days, which, if confirmed, would mark one of the biggest weekly losses for the Russian air force since the war began.
Praising Monday’s jet strikes announcement, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said in his message to the country: “This Christmas sets the right mood for the whole next year.
“Every Russian pilot must make a clear choice whether to continue participating in this war,” he added.
The major losses of Russian military hardware in less than a week offer a rare bright spot for Ukraine, whose forces have moved on to the defensive across multiple fronts after a largely failed summer counteroffensive.
Earlier this week, Russia’s defence minister, Sergei Shoigu, told Vladimir Putin in a meeting that its forces had gained full control of Maryinka in Ukraine’s east.
“Our assault units … have today completely liberated the settlement of Maryinka,” Shoigu told the Russian president in a televised meeting.
Putin said control of the town, about 3 miles south-west of the city of Donetsk, would allow the Russian forces to move enemy combat units away from Donetsk.
Ukrainian officials on Monday denied Maryinka was captured by Moscow, saying that fierce fighting for the town continued. If Russia’s claims about taking over the town are proven true, it would be Moscow’s most significant battlefield gain since last spring.
