Ukraine says destroyed Russian warship in Black Sea

While the frontline on land has remained static for over a year, Ukraine claims to have put Russia on the defensive in the Black Sea, an area vital for Ukrainian exports.

Its military said its forces together with military intelligence units had “destroyed” the Caesar Kunikov Russian landing ship off the coast of the Crimean peninsula.

The ship has a crew of 87 and there have been conflicting claims of survivors with some Russian social media channels suggesting all the crew were rescued while Ukrainian military intelligence said there were no survivors.

A large ball of smoke and flames could be seen rising from what appeared to be a ship in footage posted by Ukrainian military intelligence.

“The enemy ship was attacked by Magura V5 maritime strike drones off the coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea near the city of Alupka,” it said.

The strikes inflicted “critical holes on the left side and (the ship) began to sink,” the GUR intelligence agency said.

It published footage of what it said was a sea drone approaching the Russian ship before a blast and a large fire can be seen.

There was no comment from Russia’s defence ministry, which typically does not respond to Ukrainian claims of successful operations.

But Russian military bloggers with close links to the armed forces said it was likely the ship had been hit by Ukrainian forces.

Moscow said it had downed six Ukrainian drones over the strategic body of water. Crimea, annexed by Moscow in 2014, has been extensively targeted by Ukrainian drones and missiles since it began its counteroffensive last summer.

Ukraine says its attacks have put a third of Russia’s Black Sea warships out of action since the invasion began, as it seeks to protect its shipping routes and prevent attacks from the sea.

As the conflict has ground to a stalemate on land, Ukraine has secured success in the Black Sea — sinking several Russian warships near the annexed peninsula of Crimea and reopening a commercial shipping route for its agricultural exports.

“Time after time the Black Sea fleet has turned out to be incompetent and unable to repel attacks from Ukrainian formations,” blasted the Rybar Telegram channel, one of the largest pro-war Russian accounts.

‘Extremely difficult’

Also on Wednesday, Ukraine’s new army chief said the situation on the front line was “extremely difficult” as delays to much-needed US military aid cast a shadow over how long Kyiv’s troops can hold out.

The 1000-kilometre front line has barely moved in more than a year, with Kyiv’s forces back on the defensive after last year’s failed counteroffensive and military leaders acknowledging Russia has a manpower advantage.

“The operational environment is extremely complex and stressful. The Russian occupiers continue to increase their efforts and have a numerical advantage in personnel,” commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said on Wednesday.

Mr Syrsky was conducting his first visit to the front line since he replaced the popular Valery Zaluzhny last week in a major military shake-up.

Along with defence minister Rustem Umerov, Mr Syrsky had visited troops fighting around Avdiivka, a key flashpoint where Russia is mounting a major attempt to capture the city.

“We are doing everything possible to prevent the enemy from advancing deep into our territory,” Mr Syrsky said in a post on social media, saying his troops were operating in “extremely difficult conditions”.

Russian military bloggers and local officials have said Ukrainian forces appear to be conserving ammunition as supplies run low.

Ukraine relies on Western — predominantly US — support to fund and equip its armed forces with the shells, bullets, rockets, tanks and air defences it needs to hold off Russian attacks.

But the latest multibillion-dollar aid package has been held up in the US Congress since last year amid political wrangling, threatening to hobble Ukraine’s defensive capacity.

The US Senate this week approved $60 billion ($A92 billion) of funding for Ukraine, but it is unclear whether it will win support in the House of Representatives.

Kyiv has insisted it is holding strong in the face of a renewed Russian offensive, even as doubts linger over the future of Western support.

“Despite the difficult situation, Ukraine’s defence forces are inflicting significant losses on the enemy,” Mr Syrsky said.