(Reuters] Several hundred mourners gathered Friday in Sevastopol to remember the sinking Russian Black Sea Fleet’s flagship. It was a symbol that, according to the crowd, represented hope, renewal, and power up until it fell.

Some people hugged and others placed flowers in honor of the Moskva Missile Cruiser. The monument was in Sevastopol’s centre, the Black Sea Fleet headquarters.

Moscow annexed Crimea in Ukraine in 2014.

Ukraine claimed that one of its missiles caused the ship’s sinking.

Reuters couldn’t confirm exact details of the ship’s sinking.

Sergei Gorbachev (Reserve Captain) said that even those not on the Moskva were a symbol for all, and a symbol both of our power and our hope for the revival of this fleet in the 1990s. He spoke in his navy uniform to the crowd.

Gorbachev declared, “There will not be any victories. There will be many tragedies. But the memory will remain.”

Many of the people present stood silently, as did many others who were on board. Some of them wore St. George’s ribbon as a sign of Russia’s military.

Priest Georgiy Ployakov said, “Every ship is lost, particularly a flagship. It’s a tragedy for the tens or thousands of people who have served them for more than 20 years.”

Russia sent thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 24th for what it called a “special operations”.