How Ukraine distracted Russian warship with drones, then fired Neptune missiles to damage 'Moskva'

Following serious damage to an important Russian warship in the Black Sea, the Neptune anti-ship cruise missiles are in the news. Ukraine claims to have used the missiles to damage the Moskva, a guided missile cruiser and flagship of the Russian Navy's Black Sea fleet.

What is Neptune cruise missile?

The Neptune is reportedly a coastal anti-ship cruise missile which can destroy vessels in a 300 km radius. Its design is reportedly based on the Russian Kh-35 cruise missile.

The Neptune was developed by Ukraine over 6 years, after the project received a fillip following Russia's invasion of Crimea in 2014, as per reports. The missile was inducted into the Ukrainian forces in 2021.

The Ukrainian forces reportedly used complex techniques to make sure that the missiles were not shot down by the Russian ship's defences. Kyiv used TB-2 drones as decoys, and deployed other measures to engage all of the Moskva ship's air defence systems, as per reports.

This ensured that the Neptune missiles sailed through the ship's defences and caused major damage, as per Ukrainian accounts.

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