Multiple blasts rocked Kyiv on Monday, days after Russia blamed Ukraine for drone strikes on its Crimean fleet in the Black Sea.
At least five explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital between 8:00 a.m. (0600 GMT) and 8:20 a.m., according to AFP journalists.
Kyiv had already been hit by drones on October 10th and 17th.
After Monday’s explosions, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a Telegram message: “Following the Russian strikes, one area of ??Kyiv is without electricity and certain areas without water.”
The attack on the Ukrainian capital on Monday comes after Russia withdrew from a landmark deal that allowed vital grain shipments across a maritime security corridor.
The July grain export unlock deal signed between warring nations Russia and Ukraine and brokered by Turkey and the United Nations is crucial to alleviating the global food crisis caused by the conflict.
“(A) bulk carrier loaded with 40 tons of grain was scheduled to leave the Ukrainian port today,” Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov tweeted.
“This food was intended for Ethiopians who are on the brink of famine. But due to Russia’s blocking of the ‘grain corridor’, export is impossible,” said the Ukrainian minister.
The deal, which established a corridor through which ships could sail to Istanbul for inspections, had already enabled the export of more than nine million tons of Ukrainian grain and was due to be renewed on November 19.
But Russia announced on Saturday it would pull out of the deal after accusing Kyiv of a “massive” drone attack on its Black Sea fleet, which Ukraine called a “false pretext”.
US President Joe Biden called the move “purely outrageous,” while Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Moscow was “weaponizing food.”
Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed on Sunday the attack drones had “Canadian-made navigation modules” and they “moved within the safe zone of the ‘grain corridor’.”
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed “deep concern” about the situation, his spokesman said, postponing his departure for an Arab League summit in Algiers by a day “to focus on the issue”.
The EU urged Russia on Sunday to “reverse its decision.”
– Enough grain to “feed millions” –
The center, which coordinates the store’s logistics, said in a statement that no traffic would move through the security corridor on Sunday.
“A joint agreement was not reached … for the movement of inbound and outbound vessels on October 30,” it said. “There are more than 10 outbound and inbound ships waiting to enter the corridor.”
Turkey’s Defense Ministry later on Sunday said ships would not leave Ukraine “during this period” but that Turkey would continue inspections of ships in Istanbul transporting Ukrainian grain “today and tomorrow”.
It also said Russia had officially notified Turkey of its suspension, but “Russian personnel remained at the coordination center” in Istanbul.
The Istanbul-based Joint Coordination Center (JCC) announced later Sunday that Russia had also suspended its participation in grain inspections.
Ninety-seven loaded ships were awaiting clearance off Istanbul’s coast on Sunday, the United Nations, which coordinates the JCC, said in a statement, adding it proposes to reopen the “maritime humanitarian corridor” to about a dozen ships on Monday .
In his evening address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that “more than 2 million tons of food” was at sea but was stalled by Russia’s actions.
“This is an absolutely transparent intention of Russia to bring the threat of great famine back to Africa and Asia,” he added.
– “Pedaling False Claims” –
Sevastopol in Moscow-annexed Crimea has come under repeated attacks in recent months and serves as the headquarters of the Black Sea Fleet and a logistical hub for operations in Ukraine.
Russia’s army claimed to have “destroyed” nine air drones and seven sea drones in an attack on the port early Saturday.
It claimed that British “specialists” in the southern Ukrainian city of Ochakiv helped prepare and train Kyiv to conduct the strike.
In further highlighting from Britain – which Moscow sees as one of the unfriendliest western countries – Russia said the same British entity was involved in explosions on the Nord Stream gas pipelines last month.
Britain firmly denied both claims, saying “Russia’s Defense Ministry resorts to spreading false claims of epic proportions”.
Moscow’s military said ships targeting their base in Crimea were involved in the grain deal.
– ‘Major attack –
Russia recently criticized the agreement, saying its own grain exports had suffered under Western sanctions.
Mikhail Razvozhayev, Moscow’s acting governor of Sevastopol, said Saturday’s drone attack was the “most massive” the peninsula has ever seen.
Attacks on Crimea, annexed by Moscow in 2014, have escalated recently as Kyiv mounts a counter-offensive in the south to retake Moscow-held territory.
In early October, Moscow’s Key Bridge, which connects Crimea to mainland Russia, was damaged in an explosion that President Vladimir Putin blamed on Ukraine.
Kyiv said on Sunday its troops in the south were “holding their positions and beating the enemy to create conditions for further offensive action”.
Moscow-installed authorities in Kherson, north of Crimea, have vowed to turn the city into a fortress and prepare for an inevitable attack.
