The Russian Defense Ministry said the Vasily Bykov patrol boat opened fire with automatic weapons on the Sukru Okan after the captain failed to respond to requests to stop for inspection.
“To force the train to stop, the military opened fire with automatic weapons,” the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Image of patrol ship Vasily Bykov. (Photo: TASS)
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the Sukru Okan was en route to the Ukrainian port of Izmail. When the cargo ship stopped, Russian troops boarded the ship with the support of Ka-29 helicopters.
"After the inspection team completed the necessary tasks, the Sukru Okan continued its journey to the port of Izmail," the Russian Defense Ministry added.
According to maritime data, Sukru Okan is a Palau-flagged ship with a tonnage of more than 2,100 tons, permanently docked at the port of Istanbul, Türkiye.
Russia pulled out of a deal to allow safe transit of Ukrainian grain across the Black Sea on July 17, saying the West had failed to keep any of its promises to Russia under the deal, including allowing the re-export of grain and fertilizer from the country.
After withdrawing from the agreement, Russia issued a notice to ships heading to Ukrainian ports, stating that some areas in international waters were “temporarily unsafe.” The Russian military said that ships attempting to approach Ukrainian ports could be considered “participating in the Ukrainian conflict.”
In response, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry announced that from the night of July 21, Ukraine would consider all ships going to Russian Black Sea ports as carrying military supplies, and warned that these ships could suffer the same fate as a Russian warship that was believed to have been sunk by Kiev forces earlier.
Ukraine's Defense Ministry accused Moscow of turning the Black Sea into a "danger zone", pledging to retaliate by force against any ships in the area, including civilian ones.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry also mentioned “the fate of the Moskva cruiser” to prove that Ukraine has the necessary anti-ship means. The Moskva was the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet before it sank in April 2022.
Kong Anh (Source: Reuters)
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