Moscow/Kyiv, February 13 (QNA) - Russia and Ukraine have traded accusations of launching drone attacks targeting key infrastructure and residential areas, in a fresh escalation highlighting the continued absence of a diplomatic breakthrough in the nearly four-year war.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on Friday that a Russian drone strike killed one person and injured six others at a port facility in the Odesa region along the Black Sea -- a strategic export hub for the country.
In a post on Telegram, Kuleba said Russia had carried out intensive strikes on port and railway infrastructure, adding that rail facilities in the Dnipropetrovsk region were also targeted. Ukraine's Black Sea ports remain vital arteries for exports, particularly grain shipments, amid ongoing efforts to sustain global food supply routes despite the conflict.
Meanwhile, Russian authorities reported that Ukrainian drones struck residential buildings and industrial sites in the Volgograd region of southern Russia.
Volgograd Governor Andrey Bocharov said on Telegram that several private homes and vehicles were damaged in the city and surrounding districts, with three people hospitalized following the strikes.
He added that industrial facilities were also targeted, without providing further details.
The renewed strikes signal continued escalation on multiple fronts, despite ongoing international mediation efforts. (QNA)