Russia "opens" Mariupol and Berdiansk to foreign ships

Russia has added the occupied Ukrainian ports of Mariupol and Berdiansk to the list of ports open to calls by foreign vessels.

Source: Centre for Transport Strategies (CTS)

Quote: "The order was signed by Mikhail Mishustin, Prime Minister of the aggressor state. Representatives of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic believe this will enable the occupiers to step up exports of stolen products from Donbas and the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast." 

Details: The main cargo handled by the Port of Mariupol is metal, coal and grain. Russia plans to ramp up exports of grain and coal stolen in Ukraine from these ports, the CTS notes.

Earlier, the CTS reported that 40,000-60,000 tonnes of stolen mineral resources are shipped through the Port of Mariupol every month, and over 300,000 tonnes of looted grain were illegally exported via the Port of Berdiansk last year.

Background:

• Russia has resumed grain supplies to Syria, and these include stolen Ukrainian grain.
• The Kremlin plans to increase the share of grain stolen from the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine in Russia’s overall harvest, as Russia’s harvest will be smaller this year due to drought, sanctions, and limited access to machinery. Grain sales in June were down 34.5%.
• The Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine are playing an increasingly significant role in Russia’s agricultural sector.
• In Luhansk this year, for example, the harvest is expected to double: last year this occupied territory harvested half a million tonnes of grain, and next year they are promising one million.
• Ukraine reportedly plans to ask the European Union to impose sanctions on Bangladeshi companies that import wheat from Russian-occupied territories. Bangladesh has failed to stop this trade even after Ukraine officially stated that the grain was stolen and provided evidence.
• Earlier reports suggested that Russia has been supplying what was likely stolen Ukrainian grain to the Houthis, who control most of Yemen. Researchers at Bellingcat and Lloyd’s List concluded that this was happening after studying the movement of a ship transporting grain.
• In 2023 alone, one Russian state-owned company exported almost 212,000 tonnes of grain, worth an estimated US$46 million, from the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Ukrainian grain is being shipped to Türkiye, Libya and Israel.

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