Russian drones have hit two ships in the Black Sea approaching ports in Ukraine’s Odesa region, including a Chinese-owned cargo vessel, one day before Russian President Vladimir Putin heads to Beijing to meet Xi Jinping.
Ukraine’s seaports authority said the strikes hit two civilian vessels on Monday, one under a Marshall Islands flag and the other under Guinea-Bissau’s flag, both of which were heading to ports in the region.
The Ukrainian navy reported a strike on the KSL Deyang, a Chinese-owned cargo ship with a Chinese crew under the Marshall Islands flag. It posted a photograph of the ship showing its name with one of its sides partially charred.Aljazeera reported.
Russia has regularly attacked civilian vessels in the port area of Odesa, a vital maritime hub for Ukrainian agricultural exports, since it invaded Ukraine four years ago. Monday’s attack comes just before Putin’s two-day trip to Beijing, where he is to have talks with Chinese President Xi.
