Russian authorities have closed the passage of any ships, except Russian ones, into the Sea of Azov.
As Turkey’s Directorate General of Maritime Affairs, informed “the passage of ships, loaded outside the Russian Federation, to the north through the Kerch Strait into the Sea of Azov is prohibited.”
Before this development, and after announcing their exit from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, Russia informed that it will eventually renew its participation, as it considers that “the guarantees received at the moment appear sufficient.”
Russia had exit the agreement during the weekend, claiming that the deal cannot guarantee the safety of civilian ships crossing the Black Sea.
In fact, Russia’s defence ministry said that thanks to the involvement of the United Nations and Turkey, it became possible to obtain written guarantees from Ukraine that it would not use the humanitarian corridor or Ukrainian ports to carry out military operations against Russia.
Commenting on Russia’s exit from the deal, ICS had issued a statement, saying that the safety of ships and seafarers already in the grain corridor must be protected.
