Slava played a role in the
Malta Summit (2–3 December 1989) between
Soviet leaderMikhail Gorbachev and US President
George H. W. Bush.[5] She was used by the Soviet delegation, while the US delegation had their sleeping quarters aboard
USS Belknap.[6][7][8] The ships were anchored in a
roadstead off the coast of
Marsaxlokk. Stormy weather and choppy seas resulted in some meetings being cancelled or rescheduled, and gave rise to the moniker the "Seasick Summit" among international media. In the end, the meetings took place aboard
Maxim Gorkiy, a Soviet
cruise ship anchored in Marsaxlokk Bay.[9]
Slava returned to
Mykolaiv in December 1990 for a refit that lasted until late 1998.[10] On 15 May 1995, the ship was formally renamed Moskva.[11]
In early April 2003, Moskva, along with the frigate
Pytlivyy, Smetlivy, and a landing ship departed Sevastopol for exercises in the Indian Ocean with a
Pacific Fleet task group (Marshal Shaposhnikov and Admiral Panteleyev) and the
Indian Navy.[13] The force was supported by the
Project 1559V tankerIvan Bubnov and the Project 712
ocean-going tugShakhter.
Moskva visited Malta's
Grand Harbour in October 2004, and the Ensemble of the Black Sea Fleet performed at a concert at the
Mediterranean Conference Centre in
Valletta for the occasion.[14] In 2008 and 2009, she visited the Mediterranean and participated in naval drills with the ships of the Northern Fleet.[15]
On 3 December 2009, Moskva was laid up for a month at
floating dry dockPD-30 in Sevastopol for a scheduled interim overhaul which comprised replacement of cooling and other machinery, reclamation work at the bottom and outboard fittings, propulsion shafts and screws, clearing and painting of bottom and above-water parts of the ship's hull.[12][failed verification]
In April 2010 it was reported that Moskva would join other navy units in the Indian Ocean to conduct exercises.[19] In August 2013 the cruiser visited
Havana, Cuba.[20]
In late August 2013, Moskva was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea in response to the build-up of US warships along the coast of Syria.[21] During the
Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014, Moskva blockaded the Ukrainian fleet in
Donuzlav Lake.[22]
On 17 September 2014, Moskva was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea, taking shift from guard ship Pytlivy.[15]
In July 2015, Moskva visited
Luanda, to strengthen military cooperation with Angola.[23] From the end of September 2015, while in the eastern Mediterranean, the cruiser was charged with the air defences for the Russian aviation group based near the Syrian town of
Latakia that conducted the
air campaign in Syria.[24] On 25 November 2015, after the
2015 Russian Sukhoi Su-24 shootdown, it was reported that Moskva, armed with the
S-300F surface-to-air missile system,[25] would be deployed near the coastal Syria-Turkey border.[26] In 2016, she was replaced by
sister shipVaryag in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.[27] On 22 July 2016 Moskva was awarded the
Order of Nakhimov.[28]
Upon return from her deployment in January 2016, Moskva was to undergo a refit and upgrade but due to lack of funds her future remained uncertain as of July 2018.[29][30]
In June 2019, Moskva left the port of Sevastopol in the Black Sea to test her combat systems and main propulsion.[31][better source needed]
In February 2020,
Russian Orthodox officials said that a very rare and important Christian relic purported to be a part of the
True Cross on which
Jesus was
crucified was to be placed aboard the ship.[32][33]
On 3 July 2020, Moskva completed two and a half months of repairs and maintenance intended to allow her to remain in service until 2040.[34][35] The first post-repair deployment was scheduled for August 2020; however, in reality, she only began to prepare for the deployment in February 2021.[36][37] She was at sea on exercises in March 2021,[38] and fired the new
Vulkan anti-ship missiles in April 2021.[39]
Moskva, the
flagship of the Russian
Black Sea Fleet, helped lead the naval assault during the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine from February until April 2022.[40][41] She was the most powerful surface vessel in the Black Sea region at the time,[42] and Ukraine's only threat against it were a limited number of Neptune missiles.[43]
In February 2022, the cruiser left
Sevastopol to participate in the attack on Ukraine.[44] The ship was later used against the Ukrainian armed forces during the
attack on Snake Island, together with the Russian
patrol boatVasily Bykov.[45]Moskva hailed the island's garrison over the radio and demanded its surrender, and was told "
Russian warship, go fuck yourself". After this, all contact was lost with Snake Island, and the thirteen-member Ukrainian garrison was captured.[46]Slava-class cruisers are built for both
air and
sea superiority, and have no
land-attack missiles. Moskva mainly stayed behind other Russian warships, providing air cover for
military demonstrations of
amphibious landings with Odesa as the apparent target.[47]
In the late hours of 13 April 2022 Ukrainian presidential adviser
Oleksiy Arestovych reported Moskva was on fire and
Odesa governorMaksym Marchenko said their forces hit Moskva with two
R-360 Neptuneanti-ship missiles.[48] A radar image showed the ship was about 80
nautical miles (150 km) south of
Odesa around 19:00 local time (GMT+3), shortly after the damage occurred.[49] Two reports indicated the ship sank before 03:00, 14 April.[50]
According to the Lithuanian defense minister, there were 485 crew members aboard, including 66 officers. He also said that a Turkish ship responded to a distress call and saved 54 crew members at 2 a.m. local time.[4] Russia stated one sailor from the Moskva was killed and 27 were missing, while 396 crew members were rescued.[55] In November 2022, after families demanded information, a Russian court in Crimea acknowledged the deaths of a further 17 sailors, mostly conscripts. A Russian recruitment office mistakenly sent
conscription papers to a missing Moskva sailor in October 2022.[56][57]
Ukraine has officially declared the wreck of the ship to be an underwater cultural heritage site.[58][59]