The first ship has left the port of Odesa after the termination of the grain agreement, but Russia keeps trying to block Ukraine’s sea exports.

On August 16, the container ship Joseph Schulte left Odesa, the first vessel to use the temporary transport corridor, Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Oleksandr Kubrakov said.

The container vessel, which has been in the port of Odesa since February 23, 2022, left the Vorontsovsky lighthouse and is heading for the Bosphorus. The ship has more than 30,000 tons of cargo (2,114 containers), including food.

Russia is currently trying with all its might to disrupt the export of Ukrainian food by sea, shelling the ports and grain infrastructure. On August 16 a Russian UAV hit the Reni seaport. As a result, warehouses and granaries were damaged. In one day, the Russian Federation attacked Ukraine with 13 drones, which the Armed Forces managed to shoot down. The enemy’s main target was the port and grain infrastructure south of Odesa.