A Russian drone attack has struck Ukrainian port facilities at Izmail on the River Danube, a short distance from Nato member Romania. The assault damaged a grain warehouse and an elevator used for loading grain, leaving almost 40,000 tonnes of grain intended for African countries, China and Israel destroyed, according to Ukrainian officials.
The attack comes after Russia abandoned a UN-brokered deal that had allowed safe grain exports across the Black Sea. Ukrainian Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said on Twitter that the targeted ports are 'the very ports that have become the foundation of global food security today.' No casualties were reported, but emergency services were at the scene.
Video footage from the Romanian side of the Danube, roughly 3km away, showed a large fire in the port area early on Wednesday. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis condemned the attacks as unacceptable and described them as war crimes that further hinder Ukraine's ability to export food to those in need.
France's foreign ministry accused Russia of 'deliberately putting global food security at risk.' The attack follows similar drone strikes on grain warehouses in Reni, another Danube port near Romania. Russia has also targeted the Black Sea ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk, destroying 60,000 tonnes of grain there.
Russia has insisted it will not return to the UN deal until its own grain and fertiliser exports are guaranteed and sanctions eased. With Ukraine's main Black Sea ports effectively blockaded, the Danube has become a crucial alternative for grain exports, though it is more expensive and logistically challenging.
