Sawt Falasteen - Russia hits Ukraine aeronautics group after Black Sea strikes

The Russian strike was the latest against critical infrastructure since Moscow exited a deal last month that had ensured Ukrainian grain exports despite the ongoing conflict.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky said a Russian strike that included hypersonic Kinzhal missiles had targeted Motor Sich, a maker of plane and helicopter engines and other components, in the western region of Khmelnytskyi.

The firm is one of several "strategic" firms taken over by Ukraine's defence ministry last November.

Motor Sich's headquarters are in the partially Russian-controlled region of Zaporizhzhia in southeast Ukraine, whose governor also reported Russian missile strikes, though it was unclear is the company was targeted.

In his evening address, Zelensky remained defiant, insisting that "no matter how many such Russian attacks there are, they will still do nothing for the enemy".

- Attack on fuel tanker -

This latest strike came after Ukraine claimed it "blew up" a Russian tanker, the 'SIG', that was transporting fuel for Russian troops, a Ukrainian security source told AFP.

The tanker was hit at around 11:20 pm (2020 GMT) on Friday south of the Kerch Strait, Russia's Federal Agency for Sea and Inland Water Transport said.

The ship was holed at the waterline in the area of the engine room but was still afloat, the agency said.

In a video obtained by AFP purporting to show the attack, a vessel is seen approaching a large ship before the connection cuts off.

The Ukrainian source said the "successful special operation", which involved a naval drone and explosives, was carried out jointly with the navy in Ukrainian territorial waters.

The SIG oil and chemical tanker is under US sanctions for supplying jet fuel to Russian forces in Syria, who are supporting President Bashar al-Assad.

- Crimea focus -

The Russian foreign ministry condemned the attack on a "civilian vessel, which not only threatened to kill its crew but also posed the risk of a large-scale environmental disaster".

The ministry said the crew had not been injured.

Traffic on a key bridge across the Kerch Strait linking the Moscow-annexed Crimea peninsula to Russia's mainland resumed early on Saturday after a three-hour halt, according to the Russian highways information centre's Telegram channel.

Crimea has been disrupted by several strikes throughout the war but it has seen more frequent attacks in recent weeks.

Russian forces on Saturday downed a drone over the sea near Sevastopol, city governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said.

Ukrainian drone strikes on Crimea in July blew up an ammunition depot and damaged the strategic bridge across the Kerch Strait.

Tensions have risen on the Black Sea overall since Russia pulled out of the agreement protecting grain exports via the shipping hub during the conflict.

On Friday, Ukraine struck the Olenegorsky Gornyak vessel at the Novorossiysk base in southern Russia, a Ukrainian security source told AFP, "to show that Ukraine can attack any Russian warship in that zone".

Russia said it had repelled the attempted attack.

On Saturday, Russia said it had intercepted a US Reaper MQ-9 military drone over the Black Sea.

- Frontline fighting -

On the front line, Russia said it had captured the settlement of Novoselivske in northeastern Ukraine, where Kyiv said it was confronted with a growing number of attacks.

Footage from the Russian army showed Novoselivske completely destroyed, with white smoke billowing over crumbling buildings.

Ukrainian army spokeswoman Ganna Malyar said Friday that Russian troops were aiming to draw Ukrainian resources to the east, as Ukraine pursues its counter-offensive in the south.

Ukraine began a fresh attempt in June to push back Russian troops but it has made only modest progress, its forces contending with well-entrenched Russian positions built up over several months.

With both sides focused on winning on the battlefield, any chance to secure peace looks thin.

Saudi Arabia is nevertheless hosting talks on the war with representatives from nearly 40 countries -- including China, India and South Africa -- but not Russia.

Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak said the session would "not be easy" given the range of countries represented but "our task is to unite the whole world around Ukraine".

The talks concluded Saturday and as expected, no final declaration was released. But a European source said there had been agreement that respect for Ukraine's "territorial integrity and sovereignty" should be "at the heart of any peace settlement".

K.AbuDahab--SF-PST