Minsk was transferred to
Sevastopol, travelling through the
Dardanelles on 9 February 2022, as part of a fleet of six
landing ships brought into the
Black Sea on what Russia called
exercises, whilst it denied preparing for an attack on Ukraine. At the time there was some speculation that Russia might make an
amphibious attack on Ukraine.
Missile attack on Minsk During 2023, a number of different attacks were made on the Russian fleet in Sevastopol, but
Minsk remained in port. On 13 September 2023, Russian officials reported aerial and marine attacks on Sevastopol. They said that three
naval drones had been destroyed but some
cruise missiles had hit the dockyard causing fires and damage to
Minsk and the
Rostov-na-Donu (B-237). Various sources reported that the attacks were made with the French and UK-supplied
Storm Shadow/SCALP cruise missiles launched from a
Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-24 aircraft. Based on open-source imagery, the
UK Ministry of Defence has assessed that the vessel has "almost certainly been functionally destroyed" by the strike. Ukraine claimed the two ships were "likely damaged beyond repair", which the
Russian government denied and stated they would be repaired and returned to full operational status. The Ukrainians later also claimed that the strike killed 62 Russian personnel, and that many of them were aboard the ship because
Minsk had been scheduled to depart on 14 September for combat duty. In early 2024, it was reported that the Russians would attempt to repair the ship though it was unclear whether this would be possible given the heavy damage sustained. == See also ==