Following Russia's deployment of drones produced in
Iran to attack energy installations in the city, operations have resumed at the
Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odesa.
After strikes on Saturday left 1.5 million people
without electricity and all non-critical infrastructure inoperable, the port in
the country's south was shut down.
With temperatures set to go below zero this week,
the president of Ukraine warned that power restoration might take days.
Under an arrangement mediated by the UN, grain is
being sent out of three ports, including Odesa.
The deal, brokered by Turkey and the UN, paves the
way for the secure export of Ukrainian goods to the rest of the globe. The pact
has assisted in bringing down the world's rising food prices.
Grain shipments would not be blocked, according to
Ukraine's agricultural minister, despite a temporary halt in Odesa port
operations on Sunday.
Ten of the 15 Iranian-made drones that Russia
launched towards Odesa and the nearby Mykolaiv area were shot down, according
to the Ukrainian military.
According to Volodymyr Zelensky, president of
Ukraine, "the situation in the Odesa area is really severe."
"Unfortunately, the damage was severe, and it will take more than simply
time to restore power. It takes a few days, not ours."
The area's "points of invincibility," or
buildings that provide energy and warmth to inhabitants during blackouts, have
been utilized by thousands of people.
Several individuals could be seen swarming around
power outlets charging their phones in social media photos that were shared.
Millions of people in almost every part of Ukraine
are without power as a result of the attacks on the country's energy infrastructure,
which become more frequent in mid-October when the temperature dropped below
zero.
According to Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro
Kuleba, a total blackout of the whole nation is now a possibility.
There have been calls for the West to give Kyiv
improved air defense weaponry as a result of Russia's repeated strikes on
Ukraine's power infrastructure.
US Vice President Joe Biden informed President
Zelensky on Sunday that Washington placed a high importance on Ukraine's air defense.
Prior to the G7 summit on Monday, where further
penalties on Russia and Iran would be addressed, the two spoke over the phone.
The new penalties would be directed at Iran for
providing drones to Russia, and the EU's foreign ministers will soon examine a
ninth batch of sanctions that would add over 200 additional people and
businesses to its sanctions list.
According to the local authority imposed by Moscow,
Ukrainian attacks over the weekend killed two persons in the Russian-occupied
city of Melitopol, east of Odesa.
Since the beginning of March, the city has been
occupied, and it serves as a crucial logistical base for Russian forces in the
southeast.
Between Crimea to the south, Kherson and the Dnipro
River to the west, and Mariupol to the east, it is strategically situated.