A Russian ballistic missile strike on Saturday damaged an MSC container ship at the port of Odesa, Ukraine, according to the regional government.
The feeder vessel MSC Levante F was in port when it sustained damage from the blast, Governor Oleh Kiper reported. Two port employees were injured in the attack.
Odesa recently resumed container shipping operations after years of shutdown due to Russian attacks on civilian shipping.
Russia has repeatedly targeted merchant vessels, particularly in the early months of its 2022 invasion, and has used missile and drone strikes to damage port infrastructure in the Odesa region and along Ukraine’s segment of the Danube.
“We witnessed a deliberate missile attack by the Russian Federation on a ship belonging to one of the leading European shipping companies. The Russian leadership is trying to intimidate European businesses into halting shipments to Ukraine,” said Alexei Sukhoi, a columnist for regional outlet Dumskaya.
The MSC Levante F is a 2006-built container ship with a capacity of 1,100 TEU.
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