July 17, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news

Our live coverage of Russia's war in Ukraine has moved here.

Explosions were heard in the city of Odesa in southern Ukraine early Tuesday, about 24 hours after an apparent Ukrainian attack on the Kerch Bridge that connects the annexed Crimean Peninsula with mainland Russia.

A CNN team on the ground heard air raid sirens around 2 a.m. local time and saw air defenses operating across the city, followed by four large explosions. Subsequently, it heard four additional explosions and a string of anti-aircraft fire in the port vicinity. 

Searchlights were seen coming from the direction of Odesa's port. The crew captured an object on fire falling out of the sky as well as one large explosion, followed by a large bang.

CNN is not able to confirm where the strikes landed or what were the targets.

Serhiy Bratchuk, a spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said the Ukraine air defense was repelling a Russian air attack.

"Odesa: Air defense combat work is underway," Bratchuk said in a Telegram post Tuesday.

Oleh Kiper, head of Odesa's region's military administration, said Russia was using drones.

"Several waves of attacks are expected. There is also a missile threat!" Kiper added in a post on Telegram.

He urged residents to stay in shelters until the air raid sirens ended. At around 4:16 a.m. local time, he posted that the air alert was over for the Odesa region. 

Some background: A Ukrainian security official on Monday claimed Kyiv's responsibility for an attack on the bridge, a vital supply line for Russia's war effort in Ukraine and a personal project for President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian president Monday described the strike as a "terrorist attack" and vowed Moscow would respond. 

Shortly after midnight local time, Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said travel had resumed on one lane on the bridge.

Russia has said traffic on the Kerch Bridge has resumed in one lane after Ukraine claimed responsibility for attacking it on Monday.

Travel "resumed using the opposite direction on the rightmost lane," Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin said on his Telegram page on Tuesday shortly after midnight local time.

A Ukrainian security official earlier on Monday claimed Kyiv's responsibility for an attack on the bridge linking the annexed Crimean peninsula to the Russian mainland — a vital supply line for Russia's war effort in Ukraine and a personal project for President Vladimir Putin.

"As we reported to the (Russian) President today, we were preparing to launch bridge traffic as soon as possible. Initial inspection of the span structures was carried out, which confirmed that their condition allows for traffic flow," Khusnullin said. 

Khusnullin said officials worked out a temporary solution for organizing traffic on the bridge, saying "the span was additionally tested before making a decision on the possibility of traffic re-opening."

A video was circulated on social media — that CNN can not independently verify — shows two vehicles crossing the bridge during nighttime.  

Russia has withdrawn from a deal that allows Ukraine to safely export grain to the global market. The decision is being widely criticized as Ukrainian officials urge other leaders to continue the deal without Russia.

The key Crimean bridge linking the annexed peninsula to Russia was hit by two strikes early Monday.

The Black Sea grain deal:

• What to know about the deal: The agreement, brokered last year by Turkey and the United Nations, allowed Kyiv to export grain from its ports and navigate safe passage through the Black Sea after Moscow blockaded docks in the region. The deal had been renewed three times, but Russia has argued that it has been hampered in exporting its own products. Over the weekend, Russian President Vladimir Putin indicated that he would not renew the pact, saying that its main purpose — to supply grain to countries in need — had “not been realized.”
• What Ukraine is saying: Ukraine wants some version of the deal to continue even without Russia. The head of the Ukrainian Grain Association urged the international community to “find the leverage” to keep moving grain. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he sent official letters to Turkey's president and the United Nations secretary general with a proposal on how to continue the initiative.
• Consequences: Wheat and corn prices on global commodities markets jumped Monday after Russia pulled out of the deal. The collapse of the pact threatens to push up food prices for consumers worldwide. In addition to wheat exports, Ukraine is among the world’s top three exporters of barley, maize and rapeseed oil, according to agricultural data firm Gro Intelligence. It is also by far the biggest exporter of sunflower oil, according to the United Nations.
• Global reaction: Western officials criticized Moscow's decision to withdraw from the deal. The White House said Russia's withdrawal from the plan will worsen food insecurity around the world and urged Russia to reverse its decision. The United Kingdom called the decision a “blatant attempt to harm the most vulnerable as part of its illegal war.” The European Union’s top diplomat Josep Borrell described Russia's decision as "completely unjustified, weaponizing, the hunger of the people." France called on Russia to “stop blackmailing global food security."

The Kerch Bridge:

• Key Crimean bridge attacked: A source from Ukraine's security service (SBU) said the attack on the Kerch Bridge, which killed a couple and injured their daughter, was a joint operation of the SBU and Ukraine's naval forces. The Kremlin claimed two Ukrainian seaborne drones struck the bridge, though it did not provide evidence for the allegation. The Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation later said the bridge was struck by "naval drones." Putin called it a "terrorist attack" and directed his country's authorities to investigate.
• Why is the bridge important?: The $3.7 billion Kerch Bridge is strategically important because it links Russia’s Krasnodar region with the Crimean Peninsula, which was illegally annexed by Russia from Ukraine in 2014. It was the physical expression of Putin’s objective to take over Ukraine and bind it to Russia forever and serves as a vital supply line for Moscow's war effort in Ukraine.

Other developments:

• The eastern front: Russian forces are redeploying around the embattled city of Bakhmut to try and stop Kyiv’s offensive, a top Ukrainian general said. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of the land forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said conditions on the eastern front are "challenging." Russia has also concentrated more than 100,000 soldiers in the Kupyansk area, a Ukrainian official said.
• The southern front: Ukraine says it is advancing along the southern front, despite Russian airstrikes and a large concentration of landmines, according to the commander of the Tavria Joint Forces. Brig. Gen. Oleksandr Tarnavskyi said Monday. He added that Russian forces had been battering Ukrainian forces, but said the soldiers under his command were firing back.

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba challenged whether the Kerch Bridge, which was attacked early Monday, could be considered civilian infrastructure when he said it's mainly used for military purposes.

"What makes you believe that Kerch Bridge is a civilian infrastructure given that it is mainly used to supply Russian army in the occupied Crimea, and in the south of Ukraine, with ammunition, fuel and other military equipment necessary for the Russian army to continue its war of aggression against Ukraine," Kuleba said during a news conference from New York on Monday.
"Not every bridge is civilian by definition. And this particular bridge, first it was built illegally. It exists beyond the law, and we should always remember that. And second, it is mainly used for military purposes and we should consider it as such," Kuleba added.

A Ukrainian security official earlier on Monday claimed Kyiv's responsibility for an attack on the bridge linking the annexed Crimean peninsula to the Russian mainland — a vital supply line for Russia's war effort in Ukraine and a personal project for President Vladimir Putin.

The nearly 12-mile crossing is the longest in Europe and holds huge strategic and symbolic importance for Moscow. 

Monday's attack on the bridge was the second since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine after a fuel tanker exploded while crossing it in October.

UN-appointed human rights experts called for the immediate release of imprisoned US journalist Evan Gershkovich on Monday, according to a release on the UN website.

Mariana Katzarova, Special Rapporteur on human rights in Russia and Irene Khan, Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, responded to Gershkovich's arrest and detention while on a reporting trip in the city of Yekaterinburg, Russia.

“The arrest and indictment of Mr Gershkovich (sic) on serious criminal charges which could lead to 20 years in a penal colony is an example of the severe clamp down on freedom of opinion and expression and on independent journalism in Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine 17 months ago,” the experts said, according to the UN website.

The Special Rapporteurs lodged an appeal over Gershkovich’s arbitrary arrest with the Russian authorities on June 12 and called for his immediate release, the UN website said. No response has been received to date.

This comes days after US President Joe Biden said he is “serious” about a prisoner exchange to free wrongfully detained Wall Street Journal reporter.

“I’m serious about a prisoner exchange. I’m serious about doing what we can to free Americans who are being illegally held in Russia or anywhere else for that matter. And that process is underway,” Biden said at a news conference in Helsinki, Finland.

CNN's Jennifer Hansler contributed to this report.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov on Monday discussed several topics with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, including the situation on the battlefield and the needs of the Ukrainian Army in regard to weapons and equipment.

Reznikov thanked Austin and the US "for the supply of cluster munitions.”

“We will use them wisely, with caution, and in strict accordance with previously-specified condition," Reznikov tweeted.

The US has confirmed it sent cluster munitions to Ukraine as part of a new military aid package. The munitions arrived in Ukraine July 14, according to the Pentagon.

CNN first reported earlier in July that President Joe Biden’s administration was strongly considering approving the transfer of the controversial weapons to Ukraine, whose forces have been struggling to make major gains in a weeks-long counteroffensive.

Ukraine's president on Monday blasted Russia's decision to pull out of the Black Sea grain deal, saying, "no one has the right to destroy the food security of any nation."

Russia said it was suspending its participation in a crucial deal that allowed the export of Ukrainian grain, once again raising fears over global food supplies.

"If a bunch of people somewhere in the Kremlin think that they supposedly have the right to decide whether food will be on the table in different countries: Egypt or Sudan, Yemen or Bangladesh, China or India, Türkiye or Indonesia... then the world has an opportunity to show that blackmail is not allowed to anyone," President Volodymyr Zelensky said during his nightly address.

The deal — originally brokered by Turkey and the United Nations a year ago — ensured the safe passage of ships carrying grain from Ukrainian ports in the midst of Russia's invasion. So far the deal has allowed for the export of almost 33 million metric tons of food through Ukrainian ports, according to UN data.

Zelensky said throughout the course of the war, Russia "destroyed navigation freedom in the Black and Azov seas" and attacked Ukrainian ports and grain terminals.

"The only possible consequence of this is the destabilization of food markets and social chaos in the countries critically dependent on food imports. Ukrainian food is basic security for four hundred million people," the president said.

Zelenksy said the deal should keep operating without Russia. He said he sent official letters to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres with a proposal to continue the initiative.

The international community needs to “find the leverage” to move grain from Ukraine to the global market without Russia, the head of the Ukrainian Grain Association said Monday. 

Nikolay Gorbachov said he is “sure that Ukraine can export grain without Russia” if it is provided “international support.” It comes after Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain deal.

“The international community, developed countries have to find the leverage how to move grain from Ukraine to the world market,” the president told CNN. According to Gorbachov, this support could come from the Turkish fleet or insurance guarantees from companies.

Gorbachov refuted Russian President Vladimir Putin's claims that Ukraine has not fulfilled a vital part of the grain deal in ensuring grain is exported to poorer countries, calling it “manipulation.” 

 Although 60% of grain exported from Ukraine moves through European ports, it “doesn’t mean that Europe absorbs this grain as a final consumer," he said, adding that Ukrainian grain feeds about 200 million people outside the country.

Gorbachov maintained that Ukraine’s status as one of the world’s leading grain producers should drive countries to intervene sooner rather than later.