Russian flagship sinks after Kyiv claims missile hit

Russia's Black Sea flagship sank on April 14 after an explosion and fire that Ukraine claimed was a successful missile strike, as the Kremlin accused Kyiv of targeting its citizens in sorties across the border.

The Moskva missile cruiser had been leading Russia's naval effort in the seven-week conflict, in which civilian killings have sparked accusations of genocide from the United States and others.

Russia's defense ministry said the blast on the vessel was the result of exploding ammunition and added that the resulting damage had caused it to "lose its balance" as it was being towed to port.
"Given the choppy seas, the vessel sank," the Russian state news agency TASS quoted the ministry as saying.
On the Ukrainian side, Odessa military spokesman Sergey Bratchuk said the ship had been hit by domestic Neptune cruise missiles.

In Washington, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said he was unable to verify either version, but stressed that the sinking of the Moskva dealt a "big blow" to the Black Sea fleet.
The fleet has been blockading the besieged southern port city of Mariupol, where Russian officials say they are in full control.
Following its pullout from northern Ukraine earlier this month after failing to take the capital, Russia is refocusing on the east, with Kyiv warning of bloody new clashes to come in the Donbas region.
And with Russian setbacks in the war mounting, the CIA warned that President Vladimir Putin could resort to using a tactical or low-yield nuclear weapon.
"We're obviously very concerned. I know President Biden is deeply concerned about avoiding a third world war, about avoiding a threshold in which, you know, nuclear conflict becomes possible," CIA director William Burns said in a speech in...