ODESA, UKRAINE — At least four people were killed on Oct. 10 in the latest Russian missile strike on the Port of Odesa, Ukraine’s primary hub for grain exports through the Black Sea, Reuters reported.

The series of missile and drone attacks this week at the port have killed 14 people and injured 20. The targets have included merchant ships and port infrastructure, Ukraine officials told Reuters.

An attack on the port on Oct. 9 killed nine people and hit a container ship sailing under the Panamanian flag — the third attack on a merchant vessel in four days, regional Gov. Oleh Kiper said. On Oct. 7, a Russian missile struck a grain vessel docked at the Port of Odesa, killing one person and injuring five crew members. And Oct. 6, a vessel at the nearby Port of Pivdennyi carrying 6,000 tonnes of corn was severely damaged by a Russian missile strike on Oct. 6. That ship’s 15 crew members were not injured.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha earlier this week described the attacks as a “deliberate terrorist tactic.”

“By attacking civilian vessels Russia tries to weaken Ukraine’s economy and put millions around the world at risk of hunger,” Sybiha said in a statement on social media platform X. “We must join forces of all responsible states and organizations to stop the aggressor (to) ensure freedom of navigation in (the) Black Sea and global food security.”

Despite these attacks, Ukraine’s agriculture ministry reported on Oct. 7 that the country has exported 11.2 million tonnes of grain since the 2024-25 marketing year began in July. Ukraine exported only 7.2 million tonnes during the same period a year ago. This year’s updated total includes 6.5 million tonnes of wheat, almost 3 million tonnes of corn and more than 1.4 million tonnes of barley.