The Loss of Moskva and Lessons for the Future
Moskva listing and on fire before she sank Late on April 14, 2022, the Russian cruiser Moskva sank while under tow, making her the largest warship lost in wartime since the sinking of the Argentinian cruiser General Belgrano during the Falklands War almost exactly 40 years before. While the details of the sinking are unlikely to be cleared up anytime soon, and the war in Ukraine remains far too confused for us to draw any tactical conclusions, the event is far too significant for us to ignore entirely, and perhaps there are some relevant lessons to be found. What Do We Know About the Loss of Moskva? To begin with, we must examine what we know about the loss of Moskva , which is, unfortunately, very little. On April 13, the Russians announced that Moskva had suffered an explosion and that her crew had been evacuated. On the same day, the Ukrainians announced that they had attacked her with Neptune anti-ship missiles. While it is probable that Moskva was indeed damaged through enemy act