Serviceman killed, 27 missing after cruiser Moskva sank in Black Sea: Russia

By Ali Cura

MOSCOW (AA) - One serviceman was killed, 27 went missing and 396 were rescued from the Russian Black Sea Fleet flagship cruiser Moskva that sunk last week, the Russian Defense Ministry said Friday.

It said those rescued were evacuated to other ships of the Black Sea fleet and transferred to Sevastopol.

The Moskva cruiser sunk April 13 due to a fire that was caused by an explosion of ammunition, according to Russian authorities.

But Ukrainian officials claimed the Moskva was hit by two Neptune anti-ship missiles.

The Russian Defense Ministry earlier shared footage that shows the Commander of the Russian Naval Forces, Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, meeting with personnel of the Moscow ship at a ceremony.

The Moskva, one of the flagships of the Russian navy, was launched in 1979.