Sat 23 July 2022:
A day after Russia and Ukraine signed a deal to reopen Black Sea ports, the Ukrainian military has reported that Russian missiles have struck infrastructure in the Ukrainian port of Odesa.
The Operational Command South posted on Telegram on Saturday, “The enemy attacked the Odesa sea trade port with Kalibr cruise missiles; 2 missiles were shot down by air defense forces; 2 hit the infrastructure of the port.”
Odesa, the largest Ukrainian seaport and one of the largest ports in the Black Sea basin, has remained under Kyiv’s control, albeit being blockaded by Russia.
In an effort to restart grain exports and alleviate a global food crisis, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan mediated the agreement on Friday.
Guterres on Saturday “unequivocally” condemned the missile attacks on the port, which is key to the UN-brokered deal.
“Full implementation (of the deal) by the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Turkey is imperative,” he added.
Analysts say it is unclear whether the Russian strike meant the deal was already over.
But the two missiles that landed in the port hit a grain depot, Shelest said, a clear sign that Russia is “bullying the international community” by showing disrespect for a deal it signed only yesterday.
The war has caused food prices to soar, and Russia and Ukraine are two of the world’s major suppliers of wheat. According to the World Food Programme, a global food crisis has caused “acute hunger” to affect about 47 million people.
Grain worth $10 billion, or about 20 million tonnes of the harvest from last year, is awaiting export.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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