Ukraine: 22 foreign ships illegally entered Crimean ports in October
22 cargo ships illegally entered the ports of the annexed Crimea in October, reports the press service of the Ministry for Temporary Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine.
"Between October 1 and November 1 of this year, 22 calls of cargo vessels were recorded trespassing at ports in the occupied Crimea. In general, these vessels carried out 64 calls to the ports of Kerch, Sevastopol and Feodosia," the ministry said.
Of these vessels, 18 sailed under the Russian flag, while 3 were under the flag of the Republic of Togo.
The Ministry of Temporary Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine asks law enforcement agencies to investigate the illegal entry of foreign vessels into the ports of Crimea.
In September, 30 cargo ships illegally entered the ports of Crimea. Of these, 23 ships were under the Russian flag, while seven sailed under the flags of other states, in particular, Palau, Sierra Leone, Togo, [and] Tanzania."
Ukraine considers the arrival of ships under foreign flags to seaports and terminals in the annexed Crimea and Sevastopol to be a violation of international law and an act that undermines the sovereignty of the country. Such actions entail the responsibility of ship-owners, operators and shipmasters, including criminal responsibility.