Was Zelensky at Odesa Port as Russian Missile Struck? What We Know

Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has described how explosions rang out in Ukraine's city of Odesa during a visit to meet President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"We heard the sound of sirens and explosions that took place near us. We did not have time to get to a shelter," Mitsotakis told reporters, while Zelensky said the strike had left "dead and wounded," the AFP reported.

Citing anonymous sources in Greece's government, the newspaper Proto Thema reported that a missile struck "150 meters from where the Greek delegation was located," according to a translation.

Greek journalist Chris Koseloglou wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that Athens government sources said there was "no issue with the security of the Prime Minister and the Greek mission."

Before the confirmation of the strikes, social media users had been speculating whether the Ukrainian president was in Odesa at the time of the Russian missile attack with neither government publicly confirming the meeting ahead of time.

Pro-Ukrainian Eastern European news outlet Nexta posted a video on X from the city, in which a blast can be heard. X user Anna Winter posted that an Iskander missile had hit infrastructure in the city, while a Ukrainian Telegram channel that tracks air alerts posted that five people had been killed and another five injured in a missile strike.

"Russians send ballistic missiles to the center of Odesa while the Greek Prime Minister and Zelensky are in town," wrote pro-Ukrainian X user "Jay in Kyiv" next to the widely shared clip. "The moment of today's arrival in Odesa," independent Russian language news outlet Politics of the Country posted on Telegram next to the same video.

"Local public accounts report that Zelensky could have been in the city at that moment, since eyewitnesses saw his motorcade," the channel said, adding in another post: "Zelensky's visit to Odesa, during which the city was hit with a rocket, is confirmed by the Greek media."

"The Prime Minister of Greece came to Odesa to meet with Zelensky. Now it's clear what the 'bang' was during a tour of the port," posted Russian military blogger Karnaukhov on Telegram. "It is clear 'who' they wanted to scare."

In another post next to a still image of smoke allegedly rising from Odesa's port, Karnaukhov wrote: "This show was for Zelensky or he and his retinue were covered with ballistics by their own people."

Next to the same image, the Telegram channel Reporter Rudenko posted: "A powerful arrival in Odessa. They say Zelensky was seen in this city," adding that it was "a provocation...to raise his rating."

The Kyiv Independent said that the Greek PM was in Ukraine for a few hours and "at the same time, an air alarm was announced in the Odesa region. The reason was the departure of aircraft over the sea.

"According to preliminary data, Odesa was hit by either an Iskander or Onyx missile, as reported by local media. There has been no official confirmation," the publication added.

The Odesa region was among targets across the country in a large-scale attack overnight by Russia, which included five S-300 anti-aircraft guided missiles and dozens of drones, Ukraine's Air Force said.

Newsweek contacted Zelensky's office for comment.

Last August, Athens joined the Group of Seven (G7) joint declaration on security commitments for Ukraine and Zelensky attended the first Ukraine-Balkan summit in Athens that month. In January, Zelensky said he discussed Kyiv's defense needs with Mitsotakis, "especially in terms of air defense and artillery."

​Update 03/06/24, 1:30 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with further information, including confirmation that Zelensky was in Odesa at the time of the strike.