Ukraine: Odessa shelled
Zelenskyj questions grain agreements
07/23/2022, 4:15 p.m
The agreement on the export of grain from Ukrainian ports is only a day old when it is put to the test. Russia is said to have fired rockets at the port of Odessa. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is now expressing doubts about the deal.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has questioned the grain deal with Russia. Ukraine has accused Russia of launching rocket attacks at the port of Odessa. “This proves only one thing: no matter what Russia says or promises, it will find ways not to implement it,” says Zelenskyy in a video distributed on Telegram. Ukraine had interpreted the attack as a breach of the agreement on grain exports that was only concluded on Friday. However, Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Facebook that even after the missile attack, Ukraine would continue preparations to resume grain exports from its ports.
According to Turkish sources, Russia denies an attack on Odessa. “The Russians informed us that they had absolutely nothing to do with this attack and that they are investigating this matter very closely and in detail,” said Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar. The attack is very unfortunate. Turkey, which was involved in brokering the deal on grain exports from Ukraine, called on all parties to continue their agreed cooperation.
According to Ukrainian sources, Russian missiles hit the port of Odessa, where Ukrainian grain is loaded for export. Two rockets were shot down and two more hit the port area, said Ukrainian military spokesman Yuriy Ignat, according to the AFP news agency. In the hit port area “there is of course grain”. AFP corrected a previous statement according to which the military spokesman had said that Russia had targeted grain processing plants in the missile attack. The correction said the military spokesman did not specifically mention a grain processing facility that was hit. Ukraine and Russia reached an agreement on Friday, mediated by the UN and Turkey, to resume grain deliveries from Ukraine, which had been blocked since the beginning of the war. “
According to the Reuters news agency, Ukrainian television reports that two Russian missiles hit the port of Odessa, causing comparatively little property damage. A pumping station was hit and a small fire damaged several buildings, the broadcaster Suspilne quoted a spokeswoman for the Ukrainian military as saying. The site of the grain storage was not hit. According to the information available so far, no one was injured.
Odessa is the largest city and the most important port on the Black Sea coast. It is crucial for the resumption of Ukraine’s grain exports. With the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin “spatted in the face UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who have made great efforts to reach an agreement,” said Oleg Nikolenko, spokesman for the Ukrainian foreign ministry.