The Russian military has attacked Odesa’s commercial sea port, Ukraine’s army officials say. Two missiles were taken down by the air defence system, but another two hit the port’s facilities, causing a huge fire.
“It took Russia less than 24 hours to bring the agreements and promises it gave to Turkey and the UN into question,” says Oleh Nikolenko, the spokesman for Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry. “Ukraine demands that the agreements on resuming safe exports of its agricultural commodities be respected. Russia will be unconditionally responsible for the aggravation of the global food crisis should they fail to abide by their commitments.”
Representatives of Russia, Turkey, and the UN signed an agreement regarding the exports of Ukraine’s grain via the Black Sea yesterday. The agreement does not imply that Ukraine’s sea ports be cleared of mines: ships will use safe navigation channels instead. A coordination centre will be set up in Istanbul where Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish officials will be represented. A full-fledged ship traffic will be established in a couple of weeks, the UN says.
