The Russian navy's biggest warships are becoming its biggest headaches

Russia's navy has limited involvement in Ukraine, but like the rest of Russia's military, it is still feeling the effects of the war.

Ukraine has sunk a handful of Russian naval ships but the only major one has been the guided-missile cruiser Moskva — an embarrassing loss because it was the Black Sea Fleet's flagship. Away from the battlefield, however, Moscow's setbacks in Ukraine appear to be affecting its naval modernization plans.

This seems most evident with Russia's largest surface warships: its Kirov-class nuclear-powered battlecruisers, Admiral Nakhimov and Pyotr Velikiy, and the Admiral Kuznetsov, Russia's sole aircraft carrier.