Ukraine drones sink Russian warship ‘Caesar’ in ‘Valentine’s Day gift for Putin’

14 February 2024 , 18:04

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A huge Russian warship has been destroyed by drones in the early hours of today, Ukraine's armed forces claimed.

Dramatic footage appeared to show the 369ft-long Caesar Kunikov being struck just off the Black Sea coast of annexed Crimea. All crew members on board - an unconfirmed 87 in total - are thought to have been killed in the incident.

In the near three-minute video released by Ukrainian military intelligence on Wednesday, naval drones approach the Ropucha-class landing ship before a massive explosion can be seen. The film then cuts to the vessel apparently on its side in the water after being hit.

Group 13 special forces led the mission and resulted in the 15th Russian warship that has either been sunk or destroyed by Ukraine, whose military said it used 'Magura V5' drones in the attack. The GUR Ukrainian military intelligence said: “On 14 February 2024, the Main Directorate of Intelligence in cooperation with the Security and Defence Forces of Ukraine destroyed the large [Russian] landing ship Caesar Kunikov.

"The successful mission was carried out by the special forces of Group 13 of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry's Main Intelligence Directorate. The enemy ship was attacked by striking marine drones Magura V5 off the coast of temporarily occupied Crimea near the town of Alupka. As a result, the Caesar Kunikov received critical breaches on the left side and began to sink.”

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While a Ukrainian intelligence source said that the strikes happened fast and led to nobody onboard escaping. They told Obozrevatel.ua: "Apparently, no one escaped because the hole was big and everything happened very quickly."

Video footage apparently showed Putin's 'prized' warship Caesar Kunikov being blown up in a Ukrainian drone strike (Military Intel Ukraine/e2w)

It came just 10 days away from the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov refused to comment on the claim during a conference call with reporters Wednesday. He insisted questions should be addressed to the Russian military.

Local Ukraine reports have described the striking of one of Putin's prized warships as a 'Valentine's' present for Russia. Crimean Wind Telegram channel wrote: "The Main Intelligence Directorate decided to congratulate the occupiers on Valentine's Day in their own way."

Nearby residents said they heard an initial explosion on Tuesday, which was followed by more explosion sounds. A rescue operation by Russia involving boats and a submarine was soon put in place. While a pair of Russian Mi-8 helicopters were seen making their way to the scene.

Russia staged a sea rescue operation after the hit (Crimean Wind/e2w)

One blogger wrote how the ship sunk on the same day - February 14 - as the World War II Soviet commando officer it was named after died from his wounds in 1943 after a mine explosion. Ukraine’s main military intelligence agency added in a statement: "Magura has impoverished Caesar - the spies sank the great landing ship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

"The 'Caesar Kunikov' bag lost critical holes on the port side and began to sink. It is symbolic that the Russian officer, after whom the ship was named, was killed exactly 81 years ago." The Russian military did not comment on the incident but said that it downed six Ukrainian drones over the Black Sea overnight.

All crew members are thought to have been killed in the attack (Military Intel Ukraine/e2w)

While Pro-Kremlin commentator Sergei Markov commented that this recent attack highlights how the Russian military will be unable to take the key southern city of Odesa. He said: “The Ukrainian Armed Forces attacked the large landing ship Caesar Kunikov in Crimea. The extent of the damage is not yet clear. Maybe strong.

“In general, the Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully use unmanned sea drones. Western experts and Zelensky even claim that in 2023 the Ukrainian Armed Forces won the big battle for the Black Sea.

The ship was named after a Soviet war hero who died on Valentine's Day 1943 (Crimean Wind/e2w)

“Well, that's not true because the Ukrainian Armed Forces do not have their own ships on the Black Sea. But the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ naval drones really create big problems for the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

"And many ships apparently moved from Crimea to Novorossiysk. And the likelihood of a large landing operation of the Russian army in Odesa and Mykolaiv is now only theoretical.”