Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on February 23, 2026
2 min readLast updated: April 2, 2026
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Russia’s overnight strike on Ukraine’s Odesa region killed two and injured three. Officials say drones also hit port infrastructure, threatening Black Sea logistics and Ukraine’s grain export corridor.
KYIV, Feb 23 (Reuters) - A Russian attack on Ukraine's southern Odesa region killed two people and injured three overnight, Ukraine's emergency service and a government official said on Monday.
The two people died when a Russian drone fell on a truck stop causing a fire, the service said on the Telegram messenger.
Infrastructure Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram that Russia had attacked port infrastructure in the Odesa region.
"This is yet another blow to civilian logistics and port infrastructure. Russia is systematically attacking facilities that have no military purpose, trying to undermine the economy of the region and the country as a whole," Kuleba said.
He said the freight transport storage area was damaged.
The Odesa region - home to a large shipping hub with terminals in the Black Sea ports of Odesa, Chornomorsk, and Pivdennyi - has been targeted since the early days of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022.
Russia sharply increased the intensity of its attacks on the Black Sea ports in late 2025 when President Vladimir Putin threatened to "cut Ukraine off from the sea".
A source in the transport industry, who asked for anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, told Reuters last week that strikes on the Odesa ports in the last few months had reduced their export capacity by up to 30% from their pre-war level.
(Reporting by Pavel PolityukEditing by Sonali Paul and Gareth Jones)
A Russian drone strike on Ukraine’s Odesa region killed two and injured three, with additional attacks reported on port infrastructure that could disrupt logistics and exports.
Damage to Odesa’s port infrastructure threatens Black Sea shipping routes, potentially raising freight and insurance costs and weighing on Ukraine’s grain export flows.
The Odesa region’s key Black Sea ports—Odesa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi—were cited as targets of repeated Russian attacks, posing ongoing risks to civilian logistics and trade.
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