A Turkish-owned ferry suffered heavy damage from a Russian air strike in a port in Ukraine’s Black Sea region of Odesa.

Fortunately, there were no casualties.

Ankara has repeatedly called on Russia to stop strikes on port infrastructure.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had also raised the issue in person with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

Turkish maritime company Cenk Shipping stated that its ship was loaded with fresh fruits, vegetables and food.

It was sailing on the Karasu-Odesa route when it was struck by an air attack at 16:00 local time, after it docked at the Chornomorsk port.

Images on social media showed the 185 m-long ferry on fire. It was sailing under the flag of Panama.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke on this incident, saying that Russia is refusing to take the opportunity of diplomacy seriously enough. It is continuing its war aimed at destroying the civilians’ lives in Ukraine, he said on social media.

The attack came after Turkey had warned of an escalation in the Black Sea, many weeks earlier, when Ukraine had claimed naval drone attacks on Russian tankers in the region.

Turkish President Erdogan has called for a ‘limited ceasefire’ relating to attacks on ports and energy infrastructure.

Following the attack, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said that the war between Russia and Ukraine should come to an end and highlighted the need to prevent escalation in the Black Sea to ensure maritime safety.