Moscow: Russia admitted on Friday that one crew member died and 27 were missing after the Moskva missile cruiser sank last week amid the drastic change in its strategy in Ukraine .
It is for the first time that Moscow acknowledged the losses following the tragedy, according to AP report. Moskva, the flagship of Russia's Black Sea Fleet had remained at the forefront of Russia's naval strength playing a key role in the siege of the port city of Mariupol.
Parents and other family members of sailors who served aboard on Moskva, including conscripts, resorted to social media saying their children had gone missing and that they needed answers.
"As a result of a fire on April 13, the Moskva missile cruiser was seriously damaged due to the detonation of ammunition," the defence ministry said according to the Russian news agencies.
"One serviceman was killed, another 27 crew members went missing," the ministry said, adding that "the remaining 396 members" had been evacuated, according to the news agency AP report.
A senior Pentagon official disclosed that the Moskva warship was targeted by two Ukrainian missiles before it sank in the Black Sea. The announcement came after authorities first said that all crew members had been evacuated.
"The Russian defence ministry is providing all the necessary support and assistance to the families and friends of the deceased and the missing," the statement said. It also noted that "an absolute majority" of contract servicemen wished to continue their service aboard vessels of the Black Sea Fleet.
There were desperate calls from a number of Russian parents looking for truth about their missing children, but the Kremlin had earlier refused to share any details about the casualties aboard the warship that has a carrying capacity of up to 680 sailors.
Several families have said on social media or in statements to independent Russian or foreign press that they cannot find their children who were serving on the Moskva.
One parent, Dmitry Shkrebets, said on social media that when he tried to learn more about the fate of his missing son, the commander of the cruiser and his deputy had gone incommunicado.
Meanwhile, 37 members of the Moskva's crew had succumbed according to an independent Russian-language news website Meduza that quoted a source close to the command of Russia's Black Sea Fleet.
Around 100 men were wounded while the precise number of missing is unknown, the publication said. Some 500 people were on board when the Moskva was hit, Meduza said, citing the source.