Russian troops struck Odesa with a ballistic missile on March 6 approximately 300–400 meters from President Volodymyr Zelensky and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during their visit to Ukraine's southern city's port, Zelensky said in an interview with Italian media outlet Rai News.
The Russian attack occurred when Mitsotakis was being given a tour of the port by the president and his staff. A total of five people were killed in Odesa as a result of the strike, according to Navy spokesperson Dmytro Pletenchuk.
Zelensky said it was difficult to determine who or what the Russian troops' target was, but in any case, the attack "was beyond common sense."
"We hosted a prime minister of another country, and I am not talking about myself. I am talking about respect for leaders and people of other countries. There is simply no respect from (Russian President Vladimir) Putin," the president noted.
The two leaders' staff were not able to react quickly because the missile arrived "very fast" from occupied Crimea and the air raid alert was short, Zelensky said. According to him, the Greek prime minister "was very surprised."
In the speech at the European People's Party conference in Bucharest on March 8, Mitsotakis addressed the Kremlin, saying that "we will not be afraid, we will continue to support Ukraine and its citizens as long as necessary."
The intelligence agencies shows that Russia has attempted to assassinate the president at least 10 times, Zelensky said.
Ukrainian military suggested that Zelensky and Mitsotakis were not the reason behind Russia's missile attack on Odesa. Russian troops regularly attack the southern port city with drones and missiles.
