The Tashkent-class of destroyers consisted of a single destroyer leader, built in Italy for the Soviet navy just before World War II. Three other ships were ordered but canceled before construction. The class is named after Tashkent, the capital city of Uzbekistan, under Soviet rule at that time.
Ultimately, the Soviets found out that it was impossible to adapt Italian shipbuilding practices with the comparatively inferior state of Soviet shipbuilding, so Kiev was designed as a cheaper version of Tashkent but carrying the same armament.
One of her in-game skills is named The Blue Cruiser, a reference to how she was delivered to the Soviets in the Regia Marina's interwar paint scheme of bluish-gray overall.
