Ukraine accused Russia on September 12 of using strategic bombers to fire missiles at a civilian ship carrying Ukrainian grain in the Black Sea.
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Romanian authorities said the ship was in the maritime economic zone of Romania, a NATO member, when it was hit. The vessel was transporting the grain from Chernomorsk, Ukraine, to Istanbul when it was struck, the Coast Guard said in a news release.
Ukrainian Navy spokesman Dmytro Pletenciuc said the ship's cargo was bound for Egypt. Russia used Tupolev Tu-22 bombers to fire the missiles at around 11 p.m. local time on September 11, Ukraine's navy said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha said the strike was "a brazen attack on freedom of navigation and global food security."
The strike was confirmed by the Romanian Coast Guard, which said the vessel had a crew of 22 people on board and no one was injured, and the ship's mobility was not affected, a Coast Guard spokesperson told RFE/RL.
The ship's captain requested a change in course so that it could head to Constanta to assess the damage. A maritime surveillance vessel was sent in coordination with the Romanian Navy to monitor the distressed ship and provide any assistance needed, the Coast Guard said.
The ship was 55 kilometers from the town of Sfantu Gheorghe in the exclusive economic zone of Romania when the explosion occurred, according to the Coast Guard. The exclusive economic zone is the maritime area adjacent to a country's territorial waters and can extend up to a maximum of 200 nautical miles.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said earlier that a cargo ship carrying wheat was hit by a Russian missile strike in the Black Sea as it was headed for Egypt.
"Today's strike in the Black Sea was against an ordinary civilian vessel immediately after leaving Ukrainian territorial waters. According to preliminary data, fortunately, there were no casualties," he said. "Ukraine is one of the key global donors of food security. The internal stability and life of dozens of countries in different parts of the world depends on the normal and smooth operation of our export food corridor."
Ukraine, one of the world's leading grain producers and exporters, has been shipping about 4 million tons of grain each month through the Black Sea corridor, which was set up through a deal mediated by Turkey and the United Nations.