Kremlin refuses to comment on allegations of missile attack on grain ship in the Black Sea

The  Kremlin on Friday refused to comment on Ukraine's accusations that Russia had hit a civilian ship carrying Ukrainian grain in the Black  Sea near Romania with a missile on the night of Wednesday to Thursday, reports Reuters.   Ukraine and Romania condemned the attack on the bulk carrier that had left the Ukrainian port of Chiornomorsk  and was destined for Egypt. According to Ukrainian officials, Russian Tupolev T - 22 bombers launched several cruise missiles at 23:02 on Wednesday. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X social network images showing a freighter with twisted metal, a damaged crane and other damages. According to the Naval Romanian Authority, the incident did not happen in the Romanian territorial waters and the ship did not ask for assistance. the ministry of foreign affairs (MAE) condemned this attack about which they say ' it represents an escalation  without precedent of the Russian Federation Actions in the illegal and unjustified war which they launched against Ukraine'.   When he was asked to comment about this incident during his press conference, the spokesperson of the Russian president Vladimir Putin, Dmitri Peskov asked the journalists to address the topic to the Russian army.   In exchange, Peskov mentioned that Putin sent a clear message to the West about the consequences if Ukraine is authorised to attacks targets on the Russian territory with long-range missiles received as military aid by Kyev.   'If such a decision is taken, it does not mean anything else but the direct participation of the NATO countries, the US and the European states in the war in Ukraine (...), meaning that the NATO countries and the US and the European countries fight against Russia' Putin said on the Russian television channel.   'If such a decision is taken, it means nothing more than the direct participation of the NATO countries, the USA and the European states in the war in Ukraine (...), this would mean that the NATO countries, the USA and the European states in the war in Ukraine (...), this would mean that the NATO countries, the USA and the European countries are fighting against Russia' Putin said on Russian television on Thursday.   He pointed out that in this matter it is not about the authorisation of Kyev to use Western long-range missiles, such as ATCAMS or Storm Shadow, since the Ukrainian army does not have the technical ability to use these missiles alone that can be launched on Russian territory only with the help of data provided by American or European satellites' . And the most important thing is that, in fact, only NATO soldiers can carry out the flight missions of these systems' explained the Russian president.   Therefore, he continued ' it is not about allowing or not the Ukrainian regime to hit Russia with these weapons, but about deciding whether or not the NATO states are directly involved in the military conflict' and such a decision of involvement would change ' the very nature of the conflict' in which case ' we will make the appropriate decisions based on the threats it creates for us'.   'Yesterday's statement by President Putin is very important. It is extremely clear, without ambiguities and there is no room left for interpretation. We have no doubt that this statement will reach its recipients' the Kremlin spokesperson said on Friday, before the meeting between President Joe Biden and the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a discussion in which President Zelensky's insistent request that the Ukrainian army be able to attack military targets on Russian territory with Western missiles is also to be addressed.