Conflict & Security
India protests to Russia after deadly attack on cargo ship near Odesa
India summoned Russia's top envoy in New Delhi on Tuesday to protest against an attack on a cargo ship leaving Ukraine's port of Odesa that killed four Indian nationals.
India's foreign ministry said it summoned Vladimir Ladanov, Russia's charge d'affaires, to express grave concern and condemn the attack on the commercial vessel MV Golden Leo on Sunday. The ministry said the ship had five Indians on board, four of whom were killed.
The ministry said such attacks threaten the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce. It said the Russian envoy was also asked to tell Moscow that targeting commercial shipping and causing the loss of civilian lives were unacceptable and must be avoided.
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov implied, without giving evidence, that the vessel had been carrying arms for Ukraine. He said Russia was continuing contacts with India and explaining its position. He also said Russian forces were striking, and would continue to strike, vessels involved in transporting weapons and ammunition.
Ukraine's navy said Sunday that Russian missile strikes had hit the Golden Leo, a Turkish-owned, Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo ship carrying grain.
India is one of the world's largest contributors of sailors to merchant shipping, with more than 320,000 active seafarers in 2025, according to India's shipping ministry. Russia and India describe each other as time-tested friends, with ties dating to the Soviet era, but their relationship has been under pressure since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Update
The attacked vessel was the MV Golden Leo.
India said the ship had five Indians on board, four of whom were killed.
India said attacks on commercial vessels undermine international maritime commerce and asked the Russian envoy to tell Moscow that targeting commercial shipping and causing civilian deaths were unacceptable.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov implied, without providing evidence, that the vessel had carried arms for Ukraine.
Peskov said Russia would continue striking vessels it says are involved in transporting weapons and ammunition.
Ukraine's navy said Russian missile strikes hit the Turkish-owned, Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo ship, which it said was carrying grain.
India's shipping ministry says India had more than 320,000 active seafarers in 2025.
The source says India and Russia describe each other as time-tested friends, but their relationship has faced pressure since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Source note: AFP news report published on 21 July 2026 at 09:50:47 UTC.
Update
India summoned Russia’s charge d’affaires in New Delhi, Vladimir Ladanov, on Tuesday.
India said it conveyed grave concerns and unequivocal condemnation over the attack.
India asked the envoy to tell Moscow that targeting commercial shipping and causing civilian deaths were unacceptable and must be avoided.
Ukraine’s navy said Russian missile strikes hit the Turkish-owned, Guinea-Bissau-flagged Golden Leo, which was carrying grain.
India’s shipping ministry says India had more than 320,000 active seafarers in 2025.
Source note: AFP news report published on 21 July 2026 at 06:51:59 UTC.
Update
Ukraine's navy said Russian missile strikes on the Turkish-owned Golden Leo killed five people on board and left another five crew members missing.
Ukraine's foreign minister said a Ukrainian maritime pilot and four crew members were killed, eight crew members were evacuated and five remained missing.
The crew included citizens of Syria and India, according to Ukraine's foreign minister.
The source says it was not immediately clear whether the four Indian nationals reported killed were among those listed as missing the day before.
India's shipping ministry said India had more than 320,000 active seafarers in 2025.
India's foreign ministry said targeting commercial shipping and endangering civilian crews, or impeding navigation and commerce, was deplorable and should be avoided.
India last week urged local shipowners and sailor recruitment firms not to deploy seafarers on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Source note: AFP news report published on 20 July 2026 at 17:16:10 UTC.
Update
India identified the ship as the MV Golden Leo.
India said the ship was attacked while departing the port of Odesa.
India said the ship had five Indian nationals among a crew of 17.
India said one Indian national was hospitalized in critical condition.
Source note: AFP news report published on 20 July 2026 at 16:10:49 UTC.
Update
India said four Indian nationals were killed in the attack on the ship in Ukraine.
Source note: AFP news report published on 20 July 2026 at 16:00:12 UTC.
Update
Ukraine's transport minister said eight crew members were rescued, two of them injured, six sailors were confirmed dead and four were missing.
Ukraine's foreign minister said the crew included citizens of Syria and India.
Ukraine's foreign minister said a Ukrainian maritime pilot was killed.
Ukrainian officials reported Russian strikes on Kyiv and other regions, and a Ukrainian strike in Russia's Kursk region was reported by the regional governor.
Two senior Ukrainian generals publicly backed chief commander Oleksandr Syrsky amid protests over the removal of defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
Kazakhstan's foreign ministry condemned a drone strike on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal near Novorossiysk.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 20:34:47 UTC.
Update
Ukraine's transport minister said six sailors were confirmed dead and four were missing after the strike on the Golden Leo.
Eight crew members were rescued, two of them injured, according to the Ukrainian minister.
Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said a Ukrainian maritime pilot was killed.
The source adds Ukrainian reports of fresh Russian strikes in Kharkiv and Odesa, a reported Ukrainian strike in Russia's Kursk region, and statements by Ukrainian military leaders backing Oleksandr Syrsky.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 20:03:14 UTC.
Update
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said the crew included citizens of Syria and India.
Sybiga said a Ukrainian maritime pilot and four crew members were killed.
Sybiga said eight crew members were evacuated and five remained missing.
The source adds Sybiga's statement linking the ship attack to Russia's overnight attack on Kyiv.
The source adds context on Russian attacks on Ukrainian port infrastructure, Ukrainian strikes on shipping in the Sea of Azov, and Turkey's stated concern about the war spreading further into the Black Sea.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 18:55:13 UTC.
Update
Ukraine's navy, not Russia's navy, is the party cited as saying the strikes killed five crew members and left five missing.
The Golden Leo flies the flag of Guinea-Bissau.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 18:26:56 UTC.
Update
Russia's navy, according to the supplied text, said the strikes killed five crew members.
Russia's navy said another five crew members were missing.
The ship was identified as the Golden Leo.
The ship is Turkish-owned and flies the flag of Guinea-Bissau.
The ship was carrying grain.
Russia's navy said Russia launched three cruise missiles at the ship as it was leaving the combat zone.
Source note: AFP news report published on 19 July 2026 at 18:17:33 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
The source does not independently verify Peskov's implication that the vessel had carried arms for Ukraine.
Source
AFP news report published on .