Putin has carried out cruise missile drills in the Black Sea after warning that ships delivering cargo to Ukraine are ‘legitimate targets’ since the grain deal was scrapped.
Drills involving anti-ship cruise miles were conducted from the Ivanovets warship as Russia failed to renew a grain deal allowing Ukraine to export to poorer countries.
Russia has held missile war games in the Black Sea after Vladimir Putin threatened to sink cargo ships in Ukraine.
Live firing drills involving anti-ship cruise missiles were conducted from the Ivanovets warship.
A target ship was destroyed in the northwestern sector of the Black Sea, the Russians said.
The drills took place after Russia again blew up agricultural warehouses linked to Ukrainian grain and exports.
The unwanted destruction comes after Moscow failed to renew a grain deal to allow Ukraine to export goods to the world’s poorest countries amid the ongoing war.
Russia holds missile war games in Black Sea as Vladimir Putin threatens to sink cargo ships in Ukraine
Live firing drills involving anti-ship cruise missiles were conducted from the Ivanovets warship
Putin has been accused of using food as a weapon of war.
Russia announced this week that it will now consider all ships bound for Ukrainian ports as potential carriers of military cargo.
Thus, they would be seen as targets of war, an ominous escalation of war.
Navy spokesman Alexander Sakharov said: ‘Today in the Black Sea, as part of a two-boat attack missile group, a mock missile strike was conducted against the enemy.
‘During the exercise, an exercise was conducted using cruise missiles. The shooting was successful. The enemy is destroyed.’
The drills also involved the use of fleet aviation to ‘temporarily isolate the area closed to navigation’ and to ‘detain’ ships that fail to obey Russian orders in the open sea.
Moscow has declared several maritime areas in the northwestern and southeastern parts of the international waters of the Black Sea ‘temporarily dangerous to navigation’.
Two people were injured in a Russian missile strike targeting a grain warehouse at an agricultural company in the Odessa region overnight, said Serhii Brachuk, a spokesman for the Odessa military administration.
Putin (pictured yesterday) has been accused of using food as a weapon of war after canceling the grain deal
Russia says it has ‘destroyed’ the vessel it targeted in the northwestern part of the Black Sea
Russia warns cargo ships ‘legitimate targets’ for Ukraine
This is another terrifying escalation of the war against Ukraine – viewing all ships with cargo as targets of war
A still image from a video released by the Russian Defense Ministry shows what it calls the guided missile ship Ivanovate during exercises in the Black Sea.
‘In the morning, the Russians fired Kalibr-type missiles from the missile carrier, which was on duty in the Black Sea during the night,’ he said.
‘Unfortunately, the grain terminal of an agricultural enterprise in the Odessa region was hit.
‘The enemy destroyed 100 tons of peas and 20 tons of barley.’
Ukraine responded that it would consider ships delivering cargo to Russia as military-aligned.