Another 15 people injured in attack on one of three ports important for Ukrainian grain and other exports. What we know on day 1,396
A Russian missile attack late on Friday on infrastructure around Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Pivdennyi in the Odesa region killed seven people and injured 15, Ukrainian officials said. It comes after Ukraine said it had attacked a Russian “shadow fleet” tanker with aerial drones off the coast of Libya on Friday, in the first such strike in the Mediterranean since Moscow’s full-scale invasion. Odesa, a focal point of Ukrainian grain and other exports, has been a frequent target of Russian attacks. Ukraine’s deputy prime minister Oleksiy Kuleba said Ukraine was talking to Moldovan authorities to find alternative routes away from the affected area so trucks and passengers could cross the border. In Moldova, authorities set up temporary camps at border crossings to provide shelter and food for travellers making their way to Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said a €90bn loan from the EU to Ukraine that was secured on Friday to meet urgent financial needs amounted to “significant support that truly strengthens our resilience”, adding: “It is important that Russian assets remain immobilised and that Ukraine has received a financial security guarantee for the coming years.” The loan will last for two years and Kyiv would only repay it if and when Russia paid war reparations.
