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Ukraine said on Wednesday it had reopened its Black Sea ports that had been under siege and opened a contact center to monitor a U.N.-backed deal with wheat. Exports are close to resuming.
According to the French news agency AFP, progress towards the landmark agreement came as artillery from Kiev hit a key bridge in Moscow-controlled territory in southern Ukraine, damaging a key supply route. reached.
Kiev has said it will begin shipping millions of tons of grain this week despite Russia's weekend missile attack on the port of Odessa.
According to the Ukrainian Navy, "work has resumed" on export centers to prepare ships to transport them from mine-strewn waters to global markets.
As part of the agreement, a liaison center staffed by Ukrainian and Russian representatives has been opened in Istanbul to oversee safe passage for ships on designated routes and inspections of prohibited weapons.
Meanwhile, German officials have said that Russia has sharply cut gas supplies to Europe in what is seen as a response to Western sanctions against Moscow.
On the other hand, Ukraine has announced plans to increase its electricity exports to Europe.
Supply disruptions by the world's two biggest grain exporters have caused prices to rise, making food imports difficult for some of the world's poorest countries.
Russia seizes Ukraine's second largest power plant
The Russian military has seized Ukraine's second-largest power plant and is carrying out a "massive redeployment" of troops in three southern regions.
Russian-backed forces said on Wednesday they had captured a Soviet-era coal-fired power plant. It is Moscow's first major victory in more than three weeks.
An adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed the seizure of a power plant in the eastern Donetsk region. However, he said that this would only marginally benefit Russia.
