Ukraine fired cruise missiles at a shipyard on the east coast of the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula on Saturday, the Russian government confirmed on Sunday.
The gunfire damaged a ship and caused debris to fall onto a dock, Russian authorities admitted.
Since beginning its counteroffensive against Moscow forces this summer, Kiev has stepped up attacks on the peninsula, targeting Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
“On November 4, the Ukrainian army fired 15 cruise missiles at the BE Butoma (Zaliv) shipyard in the city of Kerch,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday, according to state media.
“Air defense systems shot down 13 of the cruise missiles,” the ministry said, adding: “One ship at the factory was damaged after being hit by an enemy cruise missile.”
The ministry did not provide details on the severity of the damage the ship suffered or the name of the ship attacked.
Debris from the fired rockets also fell on a nearby quay, but no one was injured, Moscow-appointed Crimean Governor Sergei Aksionov said.
The nearby bridge between Crimea and mainland Russia, which was previously attacked by Ukrainian forces, was briefly closed on Saturday for unknown reasons.
“On the evening of November 4, the Ukrainian Armed Forces successfully carried out attacks against the maritime and port infrastructure of the Zaliv Shipyard in the temporarily occupied city of Kerch,” the Ukrainian army said on Saturday.
The commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, Mikola Oleschuk, clarified on Saturday evening that a Kalibr cruise missile carrier was stationed at the shipyard and thanked the pilots for these attacks, which he described as “successful.”
Since launching its counteroffensive against Moscow forces this summer, Kiev has intensified its attacks on the Black Sea peninsula, which Russia captured in 2014.
In September, Ukraine launched a missile attack on the headquarters of the Russian Black Sea Fleet in the Crimean port city of Sevastopol.