On July 22, Russia and Ukraine signed separate agreements with Turkey and the United Nations to reopen Ukraine’s Black Sea ports to allow the resumption of grain exports.
The agreements stipulate that the parties "will not undertake any attacks against merchant vessels … and port facilities engaged in this initiative."
But on July 23, less than 24 hours after the agreement was signed, two sea launched Russian Kalibr cruise missiles hit the port in Odesa.
On July 25, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed that Russia had hit a military warehouse and a warship located in a military area of Odesa’s port.
“The targets that were hit with precision strikes were located in a separate, military part of the Odesa port. They were a combat boat of Ukraine’s naval forces and an ammunition depot, to which [U.S.-made] Harpoon anti-ship missiles were recently delivered to create threats to the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Now these ‘Harpoons’ pose no threat to us,” Lavrov said.
Trouble is, Lavrov’s comments contradict news reports and previous Russian statements, not to mention what Ukraine officials on the ground reported.
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