Russia unleashed another night of attacks against Ukrainian ports early Thursday, a day after warning that all ships bound for those ports could be considered hostile, in what appeared to be an intensifying effort to hamper Ukraine’s ability to export grain across the Black Sea.
At least 19 people, including a child, were injured in the city center of Mykolaiv, a port city near an estuary on the Black Sea, after an explosion set fire to a residential building, according to Vitaly Kim, the head of the regional military administration.
The nearby port city of Odesa, already reeling from two nights of some of the biggest attacks on the city since the start of the war, was also targeted, resulting in a major fire in the city center, according to the regional military administrator.
Buildings were hit and at least one person was found dead under the rubble, Oleh Kiper, the regional governor of Odesa, told a post in the Telegram messaging app. At least two people were injured.
The attacks came after Russia this week withdrew from an agreement allowing for the shipment of grain from the region’s ports, raising concerns that food prices will rise globally. Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of using the cargo as leverage in the war, trying to extend the effects of the conflict to other parts of the world.
of Russia The Ministry of Defense on Wednesday issued a warning with shipping operators and other countries suggesting that any attempt to bypass the blockade could be considered an act of war, saying ships bound for Ukrainian ports would be considered “potential carriers of military cargo.” The announcement sent wheat prices soaring.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry responded Thursday with its own warning, saying ships bound for Russian ports or occupying Ukrainian territory could be seen carrying “military cargo, with all the associated risks.”
“By openly threatening civilian ships carrying food from Ukrainian ports, launching missile and drone attacks on civilian infrastructure in peaceful cities, and deliberately creating a military threat to trade routes, the Kremlin has made the Black Sea a danger zone” for Russian ships, it said.
The Black Sea Grain Initiative has enabled food exports from Ukraine, one of the world’s leading exporters of wheat, corn, sunflower seeds and vegetable oil, to reach global markets, reducing prices and alleviating shortages.
Wednesday’s missile and drone attacks targeted Ukraine’s grain export infrastructure, Ukrainian officials said. In Chornomorsk, just south of Odesa, 60,000 tons of grain waiting to be loaded onto ships were destroyed in the attack, according to Ukraine’s agriculture minister. That’s enough to feed more than 270,000 people for a year, according to the World Food Program.
Josep Borrell Fontelles, the top diplomat of the European Union, harshly criticized Russia, saying that not only did Moscow withdraw from the grain agreement, “but they are also burning the grain.”
“What we already know is that it will create a big, a big food crisis in the world,” he told reporters before an EU meeting in Brussels.
In Thursday’s attack, Russian forces launched 19 cruise missiles and 19 drones overnight from the Black Sea and Crimea. Of those, five missiles and 13 drones were intercepted, The Air Force of Ukraine said.
Mr. Kiper said 12 drones and two missiles were shot down over Odesa, but added that “it is not possible to destroy all the missiles, especially, supersonic missiles,” which he said are “very difficult” to destroy.
He said the Russian attack also damaged the Chinese Consulate in Odesa. “This indicates that the enemy is not paying attention to anything,” he said, in an apparent reference to Russia’s deepening ties with China. The claim could not be immediately verified, and Beijing did not immediately comment.
