A Russian Navy supply warship docks at Yuzhnaya Bay, one of the main harbours in Sevastopol, Crimea – and close to the navy headquarters targeted by Ukraine’s missile assault. Credit: Eugene Sergeev (Getty).

Ukraine’s military has claimed responsibility for a missile strike earlier today (22 September) targeting Russia’s navy base in the annexed peninsula of Crimea, on the war-torn Black Sea.

A statement by the Russian Defence Ministry confirmed one serviceman is missing following the attack on Sevastopol.

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While Russia’s military claims the damage was caused by falling debris rather than a direct hit, multiple videos uploaded on X (formerly Twitter) show the headquarters of Russia’s Baltic Sea Fleet up in smoke.

Ukraine using UK- and France-made missiles for Crimea counteroffensive

General Mykola Oleshchuk, Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, initially suggested Ukraine’s involvement in the attack on Telegram, writing: “We told you there’d be more… while the occupiers are coming to their senses in Melitopol and air raid sirens are sounding in Sevastopol, let me thank Air Force pilots again!”

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence proceeded to announce that it had “successfully” targeted the naval base in Sevastopol, but gave no further details of the attack, according to the BBC.

The attack was carried out using a UK and France-supplied Storm Shadow cruise missile, also known as SCALP, launched from Ukrainian Su-24 “Fencer” swing-wing ground aircraft.

Speaking on Ukrainian television, Yuriy Ignat, spokesperson for Ukraine’s Air Force, described the attack as “the best advertisement in the world of our weapons, which fly exactly on target”.

Ignat added that he “wanted a bigger hole to be honest” but was content with the damage inflicted on the Russian Black Sea Fleet building, the Kyiv Post reported.

Since Russia withdrew from the Black Sea Grain Initiative on July 17, the area has been subject to a barrage of drone attacks and other aggressions.

From its Crimea base – which Russia first annexed in 2014 – Moscow has launched blockades in the Black Sea, as well as missiles across Ukraine. In the eyes of many, it is a cornerstone of Russia’s invasion, which Kyiv has symbolically targeted as part of its counter-offensive.

GlobalData’s recent Thematic Intelligence: Tech Sentiment Polls Q3 2023 report found the Russia-Ukraine war to be widely viewed as a continuing threat to business. Among 364 respondents, nearly a quarter (23.4%) felt it would impact their business in the next 12 months.

All eyes now turn to President Zelensky’s address to the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa later today (22 September).