-_-Moltres-_- Posted May 17, 2024 Posted May 17, 2024 One person killed, eight injured in Russian attack on Odesa One person has been killed and another eight injured in a Russian missile attack near the Black Sea port of Odesa, a Ukrainian official has said. Regional governor Oleh Kiper said five people were being treated in hospital. He posted pictures showing emergency workers near the scene of the strike. Sky News has not independently verified the report. Odesa has been a frequent target of Russian missile and drone attacks.Putin 'feigning interest in peace negotiations', say analysts President Vladimir Putin used his meeting with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to "promote Kremlin narratives feigning interest in peace negotiations", analysts at the Institute for the Study of War say. The pair signed a joint statement yesterday alluding to Russia's support for the China's proposed peace plan and a possible future Chinese-led negotiation to end the war in Ukraine. In the statement, they claim both countries support a "sustainable settlement" for the "Ukraine crisis".The ISW said it has "previously assessed" the Kremlin will "continue to use any calls for peace negotiations to feign interest in negotiations" in the hope of undermining Western support for Ukraine. Moscow also hopes the West will force Ukraine into negotiations with Russia that make concessions on Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity, the ISW added. 'Decisive' relationship Meanwhile, the institute says, Mr Putin likely views Moscow's relationship with Beijing as "decisive" in his bid to further mobilise the Russian economy and defence industry to support his war in Ukraine. "Putin and Xi highlighted bilateral trade and economic cooperation throughout their public speeches," the ISW says, adding the Russian delegation includes officials and businessmen. "The Russian delegation likely aimed to expand cooperation with their Chinese counterparts that will facilitate increased economic ties between Russia and the PRC [People's Republic of China]." China has previously signalled concerns its economic relationship with Russia may open it up to sanctions, the ISW says, and Mr Putin "likely intends to head off these concerns as the Russian defence industry grows increasingly reliant on the PRC".Russian oil refinery in emergency shutdown after 'Ukrainian drone' ignites fire Earlier today, we reported how a purported Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire at an oil refinery in Krasnodar, Russia. The blaze has forced an emergency shut down at the facility, owned by Rosneft, two sources familiar with the matter have told Reuters. According to one source, the drones hit the liquefied petroleum gas production unit while the crude distillation unit remained undamaged. "There was no black smoke during the fire. That means it was just the gas burning", a source said. Russia's state-run TASS news agency reported the fire was extinguished, citing local authorities. The Russian defence ministry said air defences downed 44 drones over the Krasnodar region and six over the Belgorod region. For context: The Tuapse plant's annual capacity is 12 million metric tons, or 240,000 barrels per day. It produces naphtha, fuel oil, vacuum gasoil and high-sulphur diesel, and supplies fuel mainly Turkey, China, Malaysia and Singapore. https://news.sky.com/story/ukraine-war-latest-putin-russia-moscow-kremlin-shoigu-kharkiv-battlefield-12541713
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