No stalemate: Shapps welcomes news that Ukraine hit Russian ship in strike on Black Sea port
The Defence Secretary has welcomed the news that a Russian warship was damaged in an airstrike on a Black Sea port as a sign that the war in Ukraine has not reached a stalemate after all.
Grant Shapps said the early morning attack on the warship in Feodosiya in Russian-occupied Crimea was evidence that critics of the way the war was progressing were "wrong".
Russia's defence ministry admitted the Novocherkassk landing ship had been damaged by air-launched guided missiles.
Ukrainian authorities claimed the ship had probably been carrying weapons, including drones, and said it had been destroyed in the strike.
The blow to Vladimir Putin's fleet comes at a crucial time for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he strives to shore up military aid from Western allies amid some unease at the spending.
Mr Shapps said: "This latest destruction of Putin's navy demonstrates that those who believe there's a stalemate in the Ukraine war are wrong.
"They haven't noticed that over the past four months 20% of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has been destroyed.
"Russia's dominance in the Black Sea is now challenged and the new UK and Norway-led Maritime Capability Coalition is helping to ensure Ukraine will win at sea."
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