Ukrainian strike destroys Russian landing ship off south Crimea coast, General Staff says
Large landing ship Cesar Kunikov (Photo: Russian source)

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine officially confirmed the destruction of the large amphibious assault ship Cesar Kunikov off the coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea on Wednesday.

The ship was hit in a joint operation with the Defense Intelligence.

The ship was in Ukrainian territorial waters near the southern Crimean town of Alupka.

Cesar Kunikov took part in Russia's aggression against Georgia in August 2008. The Russians also used it to transport military cargo to Syria. It was first attacked by the Defense Forces on March 24, 2022 in Berdyansk, but then the ship managed to survive and go to sea.

Recently, the commander of the Air Force, Mykola Oleschuk, published a video of a strike on the Russian-captured Belbek airfield in the temporarily occupied Crimea.

On January 20, spymaster Kyrylo Budanov promised to continue the strikes of the Defense Forces on the temporarily occupied Crimea.

On January 30, the Strategic Communications Department of the Armed Forces of Ukraine announced that Ukrainian defenders had successfully hit the radar station of the Russian air defense system near the village of Rozdolne in the temporarily occupied Crimea.

Budanov "wants to believe" that the Crimean Bridge, illegally built by the Russian administration, will cease to exist in 2024. In his opinion, this will not be a tragedy for Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.