Military “exercises” have been conducted by Russian forces in the northwest Black Sea, Moscow announced on Friday morning. A particularly tense zone with the end of the cereal agreement. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet fired anti-ship cruise missiles “at a target boat in the combat training area of ??the northwestern part of the Black Sea”, a body of water where Moscow since Thursday considered ships bound for Ukraine as “potential military boats”.
“Telemetry data and video surveillance from unmanned aerial vehicles confirmed the success of the combat exercise. The target boat was destroyed as a result of the missile strike,” Moscow added. Russian Defense also reported that the Fleet Aviation, together with ships, “worked on actions to isolate the area temporarily closed to shipping” and “detain the ship.”
Russia said on Wednesday that it would consider vessels heading to Ukraine in the Black Sea as of Thursday as “potential military vessels” and the countries whose flag they fly as parties to the conflict.
“Several areas in the northwestern and southeastern parts of the international waters of the Black Sea have been declared temporarily unsafe for passage,” Moscow added. Tensions have reignited in the Black Sea since Moscow abandoned this week the agreement on Ukrainian grain exports, crucial for world food. This agreement, negotiated under the aegis of Turkey and the UN, allowed cargo ships loaded with grain to leave Ukrainian ports via protected maritime corridors.
