Russia attacked the sea port of Odessa with cruise missiles on Saturday, less than 24 hours after signing an agreement aimed at resuming Ukrainian grain exports from Odessa and two other Black Sea sites.
Sergey Brachuk, adviser to the head of the Odessa Regional Military Administration, said via Telegram that two Kalibr missiles hit the port infrastructure, and the Ukrainian air defense shot down two missiles.
The extent of the damage to the grain loading facilities is not clear. A large amount of smoke was seen throughout the city after the attacks.
The export agreement was signed amid a grand festive atmosphere in Istanbul on Friday at a ceremony co-chaired by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
"Today there is a beacon on the Black Sea... a beacon of hope - a beacon of possibility - a beacon of relief in a world that needs it more than ever," Guterres said on Friday.
Russian schizophrenia:
Andrei Yermak, a top aide to the Ukrainian president, said: “Yesterday it was agreed to export Ukrainian grain by sea, and today the Russians are hitting the port of Odessa.. This is the Russian diplomatic split.”
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko said the missile strike was "Vladimir Putin's spit in the face" of Guterres and Erdogan, "who made tremendous efforts to reach the agreement."
Nikolenko called on Turkey and the United Nations to "ensure Russia's compliance with its obligations under the Safe Grain Corridor framework."
“It took less than 24 hours for Russia to launch a missile attack on the port of Odessa, breaking its promises, and undermining its commitments to the United Nations and Turkey under the Istanbul Agreement,” said - Oleg Nikolenko July 23, 2022. In the event of non-fulfilment, Russia will bear full responsibility for the global food crisis ".
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, who signed the agreement on Friday, said in a speech broadcast on state television that Moscow had "understood the obligations clearly stipulated in this document." There has been no immediate comment from Russia on Saturday's attack.
Attack time:
Bridget Brink, the US ambassador to Ukraine, said on Twitter that Russia "must be held accountable".
The European Union's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, described the attack as "particularly reprehensible" given the timing.
“The European Union strongly condemns the Russian missile strike on the Odessa sea port. Hitting an important grain export target the day after the signing of the Istanbul Accords is particularly reprehensible and shows once again Russia’s total disregard for international law and obligations,” Borrell said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address to the nation Friday that Ukraine has about $10 billion worth of grain available for export.
Comments
Post a Comment