RUSSIAN DRONES STRIKE TURKISH CARGO SHIP – Ukraine navy reports attack on Turkish-flagged vessel in latest Black Sea escalation
Russian drones attacked three foreign-flagged merchant vessels late on Thursday (May 28) and overnight as they sailed along Ukraine’s maritime export corridor in the Black Sea, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on Friday (May 29).
One of the vessels struck was a Turkey-owned cargo ship ‘Ant’ sailing under the Vanuatu flag and heading to Turkey from one of the ports in the Odessa region, according to the Ukrainian navy.
The strike caused a fire and evacuation of two injured crew, it said, adding that the vessel was laden with cargo at the time. The Russian strikes caused fires on the vessels, but they were extinguished by the crews, Kuleba said on Telegram.
Ukraine’s seaports authority said the three vessels were under the flags of Vanuatu, the Comoros and Panama.
Russia has repeatedly targeted maritime export routes during the more than four years since its invasion of Ukraine, striking ports vital to foreign trade and the wartime economy.
