Russian state news agency TASS confirmed on Monday that one of its senior Russian naval officers died in Ukraine.
According to TASS, the captain of the Russian Navy Ropucha-II class landing ship “Ceasar Kunikov”, Capt. of the 3rd rank Alexander Chirva was killed in the occupied Ukrainian port of Berdyansk on the Sea of Azov.
“Today we said goodbye Alexander Grigorievich Chirva. The commander of the large landing ship “Ceasar Kunikov” of the 197th Brigade of the landing ships of the Black Sea Fleet, the Captain of the Third Rank, ” said the governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev.
Alexander Chirva was apparently seriously injured during multiple explosions and massive fire after another Russian landing ship was attacked by Ukrainian forces in the southern port city of Berdyansk.
On 24 March, in the Azov operational zone, a Russian large landing ship “Saratov” was destroyed during the attack on the occupied Berdiansk port. Ropucha-II class large landing ships “Caesar Kunikov” and “Novocherkassk” were also damaged.
Updated: At 07:45 in the port of Berdyansk, during unloading, Tochka-U tactical missile hit at the Russian landing ships “Saratov”, “Caesar Kunikov”, “Novocherkassk”. “Saratov” is completely destroyed. “Kunikov” and “Novocherkassk” were damaged and arrived at sea. pic.twitter.com/Lu8WLjwhwg
— Dylan Malyasov (@DylanMalyasov) March 24, 2022
Earlier, the governor of Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhaev, reported that in the battles for Mariupol, a deputy commander of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet was killed.
“Captain 1st Rank Andrei Nikolayevich Paly was killed in the fighting to liberate Mariupol from Ukrainian Nazis,” Mikhail Razvozhayev said on Telegram.