ODESA: Ukrainian authorities reported on Wednesday that Russian drones caused significant damage to port infrastructure in Odesa and targeted the capital, Kyiv, from multiple directions.
The Ukrainian army defended its ground and deterred the drones, which were launched from Azov through the Black Sea aiming Odesa.
The main objective of the drone attack on Odesa was to hit the city’s port and industrial infrastructure, according to the Operational Command South. Air defence forces worked tirelessly for nearly three hours to repel the attack. While the strike damaged port facilities, regional governor Oleg Kiper confirmed that there were no reports of casualties. However, the attack resulted in fires breaking out at various facilities and caused damage to an elevator, according to Arab News.
The backdrop to these drone attacks lies in Russia’s contentious decision to withdraw from a grain deal last month that allowed Kyiv’s exports despite the ongoing war. As a consequence of this decision, Russia has been relentlessly targeting Odesa, a historically significant city located on the Black Sea and one of Ukraine’s primary ports.
Moreover, formerly lesser-known ports like Izmail and Reni have become crucial to global food supplies, leading to a massive bottleneck in grain processing. Russia targeted Reni with drones on July 24, and now the Danube River port of Izmail has become the main export route for Ukrainian agricultural products.
In response to the drone attacks, Kyiv’s military administration stated that more than ten Russian drones were downed during an overnight attack on the capital. The drones entered Kyiv simultaneously from various directions, but the air defence forces managed to detect and destroy them in time. However, the attack did cause debris from a drone to hit some areas in the Golosiivsky district, resulting in a fire in a non-residential building. Fortunately, no casualties were reported, and emergency services quickly responded to the incident.
The attacks on Ukrainian ports and Kyiv come just a day after Russia claimed to have downed several Ukrainian drones targeting Moscow, Crimea, and Black Sea vessels. Additionally, Moscow’s financial district experienced a drone strike for the second time in days.
These drone attacks have raised concerns about the safety of critical infrastructure and food supplies in the region. Ukraine has highlighted the urgent need for better means of defence against such strikes, as Russia’s actions are significantly affecting its economic stability and food exports.
The situation remains tense, and international attention is drawn to the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The impact on civilians and vital infrastructure underscores the importance of finding a peaceful resolution to the ongoing crisis. Diplomatic efforts and global cooperation are essential in mitigating the conflict and ensuring the safety and security of the affected regions.
![NEW YORK: Pakistan's former Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, leading Pakistan’s high-level parliamentary delegation, on Tuesday warned that India's aggressive actions pose a serious threat to peace in South Asia and urged the international community to take note of India's aggressive conduct. Bilawal was addressing a press conference at the United Nations headquarters in New York on recent regional developments after the military conflict between India and Pakistan. The Pakistani delegation is in New York to present Pakistan’s stance on the military escalation with India and to challenge New Delhi’s narrative at the global level. The visit is part of Pakistan’s sustained diplomatic outreach to brief key UN stakeholders on the alarming regional situation. The Pakistani delegation is also scheduled to arrive in Washington today, where it plans to engage with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, other senior officials, lawmakers, and think tanks till June 6. The team will also visit London and Brussels. Speaking at the press conference, Bilawal said that he wanted to use the opportunity to share Pakistan’s perspective on the recent military conflict with India in the wake of the Pahalgam attack and the way forward. Bilawal said that the “illegal strikes” launched by India as part of its ‘Operation Sindoor’ were “in violation of the UN Charter, international law”. He said the attacks had targeted civilian infrastructure, places of worship, energy infrastructure and innocent women and children. He said India had used the April 22 terrorist attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s (IIOJK) Pahalgam as a pretext to launch the attack inside Pakistan. Following the Pahalgam incident, Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered publicly to India that Pakistan was ready to be part of any impartial international investigation into this attack. “We did so because we were confident, our hands were clean and we had nothing to do with this terrorist attack. “We expressed our sympathy with the victims of terrorism and Pakistan has consistently and unequivocally condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations,” he said, adding that PM Sharif had immediately expressed Pakistan’s willingness to India and the global community to be part of any impartial international investigation. “Indian government refused Pakistan's offer and chose instead to conduct their illegal strikes. Pakistan only then acted in self-defence, we never initiated any violence against India,” Bilawal said. Bilawal emphasised that Pakistan never initiated hostilities against India but responded to Indian aggression by downing six Indian fighter jets. "The Pakistani military had responded with precision the night of the first Indian attack and only targeted and downed six planes because we believed those were the ones to release their load on Pakistan”. He stated that US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio played a vital role in achieving a ceasefire during heightened tensions between the nuclear-armed South Asian neighbours. “We’ve seen during the course of this conflict how quickly the escalation ladder between our two countries rose and the concern is that the next time there is such an incident, there may not be time for the international community to intervene before things get a lot worse. That is why it is absolutely important for Pakistan and the international community to continue to pursue dialogue and diplomacy as the only viable path to peace.” He said Pakistan’s position was to hold a “comprehensive dialogue” with India that would include the issue of terrorism as well. The head of the Pakistani delegation said that no civilized nation can support the use of water as a weapon and urged the international community to play its part, questioning, "What would be the global reaction if someone’s lifeline was cut off?" He stressed that Pakistan has paid a heavy price in the fight against terrorism and has suffered the most. “The single largest number of terrorist attacks that take place in any one country is Pakistan. The single largest number of victims of terrorism is Pakistan. I myself have suffered at the hands of terrorists. My mother [Benazir Bhutto] was assassinated by the terrorists.” Bilawal also criticised India for targeting water reservoirs and civilian areas, including mosques, during its attacks. Calling negotiations the only path to peace, Bilawal reiterated that the unresolved Kashmir dispute remains the root cause of regional instability. He urged the global community to take notice of India’s aggressive conduct.](https://wenewsenglish.com/storage/2025/06/Bilawal-Bhutto-Zardari-300x180.jpg)
