Russia says strikes hit three cargo ships in Black Sea

Russia's Defence Ministry said on Sunday its overnight strikes hit three cargo vessels it said were carrying military goods for Ukraine, at Odesa, at Chornomorsk and south-west of Odesa, and two electricity substations.

Why it matters: Strikes on merchant vessels at Ukraine's two main Black Sea ports would raise the risk on the cargo corridor if confirmed, but the vessel claims are Moscow's alone so far; Ukraine's DTEK did confirm an overnight attack on energy facilities in Dnipropetrovsk that left more than 600,000 people without power.

Data as of Reuters report of November 8, 2026, read in full via gCaptain in this run. The sole source for the vessel strikes is the Russian Defence Ministry, a party to the conflict; Reuters stated it could not independently verify the ministry's claims, and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. DTEK's statement on the Dnipropetrovsk attack is the company's own, carried by Reuters. Developing item.

Russia’s Defence Ministry said Russian forces struck three cargo vessels in overnight attacks on Sunday, one container ship it said was delivering weapons and military equipment to the Black Sea port of Odesa, a second container ship in the port of Chornomorsk that it said had delivered dual-use cargo, and a dry cargo ship south-west of Odesa that it said was carrying weapons for Ukraine’s armed forces, Reuters reported. The ministry also said it hit two electricity substations in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zhytomyr regions, which it said supplied power to the Ukrainian defence industry.

Reuters said it could not independently verify the ministry’s claims, and there was no immediate comment from Ukraine. Ukrainian power company DTEK said a Russian overnight attack on energy facilities in Dnipropetrovsk had damaged important facilities and left more than 600,000 people without electricity.

Russia says strikes hit three cargo ships in Black Sea

Sources