Turkish ship suffers from Russian strike on the high seas

The Turkish vessel Viva, which was heading to Egypt with sunflower oil on board, was attacked by a Russian drone outside the ports of Odesa region in the open sea.

This was reported by the press service of the Ukrainian Navy.

The attack took place on December 13, when the vessel was passing through the grain corridor and was carrying 11 citizens of the Republic of Turkey. As explained by the Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenchuk, at the time of the attack, the vessel was outside the range of Ukrainian air defense.

Mr. Pletenchuk also noted that since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in the Black Sea, more than 130 civilian vessels have been damaged, some of them sank. In previous attacks, sailors and port workers, including foreign nationals, have been killed.

For example, on December 12, Russians attacked a civilian vessel in one of the ports of Odesa region, Chornomorsk.

And on November 17, residents of the village of Plaura in Tulcea and their animals were evacuated due to the danger of an explosion in the area after a ship carrying thousands of tons of liquefied petroleum gas caught fire near the Ukrainian port of Izmail in Odesa region as a result of an attack by Russian drones.

Earlier, the Ingulsky dredger, which was damaged in July while working in the mouth of the Bystryi River, was successfully raised from the bottom of the canal. According to the USPA, the vessel has now been sent for a technical inspection, the results of which will determine the scope and procedure for repair work. The vessel was half-submerged, but it was decided to restore it and use it again.

Late in the evening, on July 23, an emergency occurred with a dredger belonging to the Delta Pilot branch of the state enterprise Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority: the vessel hit a mine. The explosion killed three USPA employees. Other crew members were hospitalized.

Кирило Бойко