Russian forces have relocated five bulkers that were berthed at the captured port of Berdyansk, according to Governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast Oleksandr Starukh.
According to Mr. Starukh, residents of Berdyansk reported that there were five ships in the port; some of them were fully loaded and some are partially loaded.
A few days ago, these ships disappeared from the port of Berdyansk. According to people, they were driven away by Russian tugs. There were tens of thousands of tons of Ukrainian grain there.
What is more, a local resident confirmed to U.S.-funded Radio Svoboda that five foreign-flagged vessels left the port on March 15, all laden with Ukrainian grain. The ships were accompanied by a Russian tug.
In a similar development during the early days of the war, two Ukrainian merchant vessels were intercepted and brought to the Russian-controlled port of Sebastopol.
In addition, on February 25, the Russian Navy captured the Ukrainian rescue vessel Sapphire, which was under way for Snake Island on a search and recovery mission.
The capture of the Sapphire left Ukraine without one of its most capable rescue/firefighting tugs, while multiple merchant ships have been hit by Russian missiles and rockets since the outbreak of the war, and one seafarer has been killed.
