Russia claimed that it test-fired cruise missiles off the coast of Japan on Thursday in an exercise that included over 15 warships, support vessels and aircraft.
“Pacific Fleet submarines launch Kalibr cruise missiles at mock enemy ships,” the Ministry of Defense of The Russian Federation wrote in a Facebook post that included video of the exercise. “Two diesel-electric submarines Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Volkhov launched cruise missiles from an underwater position in the waters of the Sea of Japan.”
“The cruise missiles successfully hit a target – a special marine shield imitating a surface ship of a mock enemy,” the post continued. “More than 15 warships and support vessels, as well as naval aviation aircraft of the Pacific Fleet, took part in the exercise.”
The exercise comes after the Japanese government continues to back Ukraine amid the Russian invasion. Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmygal announced additional financial support from Japan on Friday – the island nation is sending Ukraine 13 billion yen.
“These are funds to finance our primary needs …. We are negotiating assistance at all levels with everyone who can help,” Shmygal said, according to Reuters.
In March, Japan sent an Air Self-Defense Force KC-797 aircraft carrying bulletproof vests and other equipment to Poland for Ukraine, Stars and Stripes reported.
“Russia has escalated its military activities by deploying its latest equipment and conducting exercises and training around Japan,” Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said, as reported by ABC News.
Matsuno added that Japan is watching Russia’s activity in the region closely, but would not provide any additional details because “doing so would reveal Japan’s information gathering capability.”
Japan’s finance minister said that the nation’s leaders are preparing to attend the G20 summit next week. When asked about Russia’s possible attendance, Shunichi Suzuki said Japan “is not in the position to respond to each country’s participation.”
“The G20 meeting is a very important conference to discuss various issues of the global economy, including rising food and energy prices due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” Suzuki said, according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, the Russian warship Moskva, which was heavily damaged in an explosion on Wednesday, has sunk.
The Russian Ministry of Defense has now confirmed that the warship Moskva, a Slava-class guided-missile cruiser, has sunk. In a statement reported by the Russian state-run TASS news agency, the Russian Defense Ministry said, “During the towing of the Moskva cruiser to the designation port, the ship lost stability due to hull damage, sustained during the detonation of ammunition because of a fire.”
