Forum: Moskva sank with two nuclear warheads

Russian cruiser Moskva allegedly sank with two nuclear warheads, according to a forum

What was a flagship of the Black Sea Fleet doing with two nuclear warheads in its hold? This is not a rhetorical question. The sinking of the Moskva left on the table a fact that no one in the West has firmly denied, according to some participants in a forum discussion: the ship went down with nuclear weapons on board. According to circulating versions, there were only 50 survivors, all rescued by Turkey. The ship, they insist, was never towed: it sank to the bottom of the sea. Two foreign media outlets confirm this, although each places the emphasis where it suits them.

What peine to the Moskva and its 500 crew members

The official Russian account first spoke of a fire and then of a storm during towing. The version prevailing in circles least suspected of pro-Russian bias is different: impact by Ukrainian missiles, sinking, and a casualty toll that Moscow has never acknowledged. The repeated figure is 500 dead. There is no official statement confirming it, but neither is there a serious denial.

What is striking is not the number. What is striking is that a cruiser of that category sailed with two nuclear warheads in an active war zone, according to circulating versions. The question hovering over the whole matter is who will go down to retrieve them. And the answer, for now, is no one.

Who retrieves the nuclear warheads from the seabed

Some argue that Vladimir Pilingui will send someone to bring "those warheads by the ears." Others recall precedents: the Soviet K-129 and the American USS Scorpion, both sunk during the Cold War, both with official stories that do not add up. The difference is that back then there were no cameras or social media.

The option of doing nothing also has defenders. Recovering nuclear material from the Black Sea floor is an operation requiring means that Russia, at this stage, does not seem to have available. And doing so under NATO surveillance turns any attempt into a spectacle.

The Russian revenge that never comes

The most repeated argument in gossip mills is that Russia will return the blow. That it will sink a NATO ship. That the grandchildren of those who ate rats in Leningrad do not kneel. The problem is that this blow has not materialized for months. According to a calculation circulating in the debate, 15,000 men have been killed, planes and helicopters shot down, and 25% of its armored vehicle fleet destroyed, yet Russia still has not declared war on NATO.

There is an uncomfortable explanation: it is not interested. An open war against NATO would be lost or turned into something worse for everyone, including Europe. So tantrums, nuclear threats, and denunciations. Little more.

The Kursk, the Indianapolis, and selective memory

When the Kursk is brought up, it is worth remembering the USS Indianapolis. Both sank, both left hundreds dead, and both were managed with an opacity that would be unthinkable today. Selective memory is a national sport everywhere.

What is true is that the Moskva was the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet. That it carried some "big ones" on board should surprise no one. That it carried exactly two is what is being debated.

Ukraine and the calculation of provocation

The most twisted hypothesis circulating is that Ukraine simulates an attempt to recover the nuclear armament to attract more Russian fleet and hunt it. The Russians would get nervous, make mistakes, and the war would end sooner. It is a theory, not a confirmed plan.

What makes sense is that Ukraine does not want to use nuclear weapons even if it could. Putting a non-nuclear weapon in Moscow would already pose such a high risk that the war would escalate uncontrollably. And nuclear warheads, in any case, are not detonated by whoever captures them: they carry codes and safety measures that make casual use impossible.

The seabed as a nuclear cemetery

There is a current arguing that the warheads are expired and rotten, that the officer in charge did not perform maintenance and pocketed the budget. If that is true, the risk of detonation is low. The risk of contamination is another matter.

The Black Sea floor already has enough scrap metal to add radioactive material. The difference is that this time there are witnesses, media, and an ongoing war. No one is going to go down to check with a camera.

---

So the question remains unanswered. Who goes down to rescue the nukes? No one. And if someone does, they won't tell.