Russia blasts Odessa as Zelenskyy and Greece’s PM end tour of war-ravaged

A big explosion was heard in the Ukrainian city of Odesa while President Zelenskyy and Greece’s prime minister were visiting on Wednesday.

The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that the groups of people were getting into their cars when they heard a loud explosion. He said that this was a strong reminder that Odesa is in a war with Russia. He says that it’s different to learn about war than to actually go through it yourself.

Zelenskyy said that the explosion hurt and killed many people, but the exact number is not known yet. “He told reporters that they don’t care where to hit. ”

Russian officials did not respond right away.

Zelenskyy often goes to cities and military units on the front line during the war, but nobody knows until he’s gone. Leaders from other countries have visited Ukraine many times. Sometimes, they have had to go to shelters to stay safe when air raid alarms go off.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, criticized the “terrible attack” during the visit to Greece on X. She said this on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. She said Russia is trying to scare people again.

Zelenskyy guided Mitsotakis around the damage in Odesa. In the latest big Russian attack, 12 people, including five kids, died when debris from a Russian drone hit an apartment building on March 2nd.

Mitsotakis said that Odesa is very important to Greece because it’s where the Filiki Etairia organization was started. This organization fought for Greece to be free from Ottoman rule in the 1800s.