Russian drones hit China ship off Ukraine before
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- Russian drones struck two civilian vessels in the Black Sea on Monday, including the Chinese‑owned cargo ship KSL Deyang, as part of a broader raid of 524 attack drones and 22 missiles across Ukraine.
- KSL Deyang, sailing under a Marshall Islands flag with a Chinese crew, suffered a partial fire but no crew injuries and continued to its destination to load iron ore concentrate at Odesa’s Pivdennyi port.
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted that the attack on the Chinese vessel was deliberate, noting that Russian forces “could not have been unaware of what vessel was at sea.”
- Vladimir Putin is scheduled to meet Xi Jinping in Beijing the next day, making the incident a notable pre‑meeting flashpoint in Russian‑Chinese ties.
Why it matters: China risks commercial losses and diplomatic friction as Russian drones strike its ship, while Ukraine shows its ability to hit foreign vessels, raising stakes for the upcoming Putin‑Xi talks and global shipping insurance.
