Deadly Russian strike hits Odesa as von der Leyen arrives in Ukraine for defence talks
A Russian attack on Ukraine‘s Black Sea port city of Odesa killed three, a local official said on Wednesday.
Serhiy Lysak, head of the city’s military administration, said on Telegram that three other people had been hospitalised after the attack.
Lysak said that residential buildings had been damaged in the attack, without providing additional details.
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Russia confirmed the attacks and said it hit a number of targets in the ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk in Ukraine’s Odesa region using precision-guided air-launched weapons and attack drones.
Port infrastructure facilities used for unloading fuel and lubricants as well as fuel storage tanks were hit, Russia said.
In a statement, Russia’s defence ministry also said four vessels delivering cargoes for the Ukrainian armed forces were struck in the ports of Chornomorsk and Dnipro-Buh.
Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv on Wednesday and said she would announce new moves to deepen the integration of European and Ukrainian defence industries.
“I will announce new initiatives to integrate our defence industries. So we can produce more, and faster,” she said on X, posting footage of her arrival on the platform.
Russia in recent days has stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s deepwater Black Sea ports in the Greater Odesa cluster, which are vital to foreign trade and the country’s wartime economy.
Regional Governor Oleh Kiper said on Tuesday that two people were killed in an evening drone attack on port infrastructure in the region. A civilian vessel under a Marshall Islands flag had been damaged in the attack, he said.
Overnight on Tuesday, Ukrainian drones also struck 20 Russian vessels in the Black Sea overnight, including 17 oil tankers, the commander of Kyiv’s drone forces said on Wednesday.
On Telegram, Robert Brovdi said the targets included two gas tankers and a tugboat.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AFP)