UKRAINE blasted a Russian naval port with a barrage of missiles today, heavily damaging a Russian attack submarine and naval ship.
Blistering strikes saw up to seven huge explosions resulting in a massive inferno in the Sevastopol port in annexed Crimea.
The Kilo-class Rostov-on-Don was damaged in the shipyard strike, stated Kremlin-friendly Shot media.
The diesel-electric vessel, launched in 2014, had been used to attack Ukraine, ad a second damaged vessel was a large landing ship called Minsk.
This follows earlier damage in the war to landing ships Saratov, Novocherkassk, and Caesar Kunikov.
The Putin-appointed governor of occupied Sevastopol, Mikhail Razvozhayev, said at least 24 people were wounded and two died.
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Footage showed the scale of the attack – the largest of the war so far – on the city which is the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
Aship building and repair yard was engulfed in flames and a power plant and other Black Sea naval facilities were also reportedly hit.
The Russian defence ministry said ten cruise missiles attacked the shipyard and claimed seven had been shot down.
It admitted two ships undergoing repair were “damaged" but did not identify the vessels.
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Ukraine's air force said it intercepted 32 of 44 Shahed-type drones launched over Ukraine overnight, with most of the them launched toward the southern parts of the Odessa district.
The ministry said three kamikaze sea drones were destroyed by the patrol ship Vasily Bykov.
The shipyard was set up by the Imperial Navy in 1783 – and it's the largest in the region.
Putin uses the city as a hub for strikes on Ukraine.
Razvozhayev said: "As a result of the attack, according to preliminary information, a total of 24 people were injured, four are in a moderate condition.
"All necessary assistance to the victims is provided in full."
One eyewitness said: "I heard missiles passing over us towards the bay, and the explosions started. Three of four missiles were right over us."
Another Sevastopol resident said there was "a horrendous explosion right outside my window – the sky was on fire".
Other witnesses cited windows shattering during the blast, flashes of life and missiles.
The attack came as Putin and Kim Jong-Un shook hands as they met at a space base for weapons talks just hours after North Korea fired two ballistic missiles.
Kim – who rarely leaves his country – is reportedly willing to hand Putin artillery shells and anti-tank missiles in exchange for satellite and nuclear submarine technology.
The North Korean leader arrived at the Vostochny Cosmodrome on his armoured train on Wednesday morning after crossing into Russia the day before.
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Putin told Kim he was "very glad to see" him, while the North Korean despot thanked Putin for the invitation to Russia.
Speaking at the space base, Putin told reporters that the pair would discuss "all the issues" at their meeting.
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