Ukraine strikes cargo ships and admits Romania drone blast as Putin prepares for key speech

Ukraine announced that five ships carrying illegal cargo were hit in the Sea of ​​Azov and the coastal waters of Russian-occupied territories.

The commander of Ukrainian drone forces said that in addition to “stealing” Ukrainian grain, the ships were also involved in the transfer of military cargo and fuel.

The strikes came as Russian President Vladimir Putin prepared to speak at a major economic event in St Petersburg and a day after Ukrainian President Zelensky offered to hold face-to-face talks with the Russian leader about ending the war.

Meanwhile, Ukraine confirmed that one of its navy’s unmanned aerial vehicles exploded off the coast of Romania on Friday. It was stated that there were no injuries in the explosion.

It was unclear whether Kiev’s alleged attacks on cargo ships were linked to the deaths of five Azerbaijanis who the country’s foreign ministry said were killed in drone attacks on ships at sea.

Azerbaijan’s foreign ministry said on Friday that two cargo ships, Natra and Zirkon, in the Taganrog Bay region of the Sea of ​​Azov, were attacked by unmanned aerial vehicles overnight.

While it was not stated who was behind the attacks, it was stated that the ships did not belong to Azerbaijan.

Russia blamed Ukraine for the attacks. There was no immediate response from Kiev.

Earlier, Ukraine’s drone commander Robert Brovdi announced that five “illegally roaming ships” had been shot down overnight in the ports of Mariupol, Berdyansk and in the country’s coastal waters in what Ukraine calls “temporarily occupied territories” – parts that Russia currently controls.

He said five ships, including cargo ships and tankers, had their names painted over and their radars were turned off for the purpose of “quietly stealing Ukrainian grain” and “transporting military cargo and fuel.” Brovdi did not mention any deaths.

According to local officials, at least 13 people died and more than 70 people were injured in Ukraine in the last day.

Four people were among those killed when Russian drones attacked a dairy factory outside Ukraine’s capital Kiev, according to the regional head.

Deaths and injuries from Russian attacks were also reported in the Kherson, Kharkiv, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Chernihiv and Dnipro regions.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said other facilities hit included food warehouses, a postal building and a school.

On Thursday, he called for face-to-face meetings between himself and Vladimir Putin in a renewed attempt to end the war.

In his open letter to the Russian President, Zelensky stated that it would be “wrong to expect” the war in Europe to once again become the focus of US attention, adding that peace could only come “through direct interaction” between Ukraine and Russia.

He also called for a full ceasefire for the duration of the proposed negotiations; but this was something Putin denied earlier on Thursday.

The Kremlin confirmed it had received the letter. Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state newspaper Izvestia that Putin was likely to comment on the issue on Friday.

The European Union, France and the USA are among those who support Zelensky’s calls for a meeting.

“I think it would be great if they met. They should. Get it done,” US President Donald Trump told reporters on Thursday.

“I want each of them to make certain concessions, and I think they will.”

Speaking to foreign journalists in St Petersburg on Thursday, Putin, who apparently did not see the contents of the letter, said he was “absolutely ready and willing to reach an agreement with Ukraine” but that concessions had to be made.

It immediately seemed to cast doubt on whether a meeting or agreement would take place.

“Whether Mr. Zelensky is a legitimate representative of Ukraine is a question for which these lawyers must conduct legal analysis,” he said; It was a repeat of the Russian line that there have been no presidential elections since Zelensky’s term ends in May 2024.

However, the elections were postponed due to martial law declared after the Russian invasion in Ukraine.

Putin’s long-standing position has been that Ukraine should withdraw from four regions largely occupied by Russia (Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia) and abandon efforts to join NATO.

Ukraine has refused to give up the territory, saying it would embolden Russia to invade again in 2022, as it launches its full-scale war eight years after illegally annexing Crimea.

Ceasefire talks have stalled in recent months, and previous peace talks in Geneva, Abu Dhabi and Istanbul have failed.

Also on Friday, a marine drone exploded in the port of Constanta on Romania’s Black Sea coast.

The country’s defense ministry said the drone self-exploded near an oil terminal without causing any casualties, but officials said it caused serious damage to a ship and warehouses.

Adrian Teodor Picoiu, a senior official in Constanta, told G4Media that “information from the Ukrainian side” was that the drone belonged to a group of five people and that the second one exploded in Ukraine.

Ukraine later confirmed that one of the navy’s unmanned aerial vehicles was involved and said it had gone off course due to Russian electronic interference. There was no response from Moscow to this claim.

The existence of the remaining three drones is unknown, but officials said there was no other risk. No reason has yet been given as to why the drones are in Romanian waters.

President Nicusor Dan wrote in

The incident came a week after two people were injured when a drone crashed into an apartment block in the eastern city of Galati, near the Romanian border.

Romanian officials said they had confirmed it was a Russian drone, but Moscow said “accusations” of its involvement were “unfounded”.