As of July 20, Russia will consider all maritime vessels en route to Ukrainian Black Sea ports as potentially carrying military cargoes, the Russian Defense Ministry has said.
The announcement comes two days after Moscow withdrew from the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which had allowed Ukraine to export grain—despite ongoing hostilities—through the Black Sea.
“Given that the Black Sea initiative has come to an end … all ships going across the Black Sea to Ukrainian ports will be considered potential carriers of military-purpose cargoes,” the ministry declared on the evening of July 19.
Countries whose flags are affixed to such vessels, it added, would be viewed as “parties to the conflict on the side of Ukraine.”
Brokered one year ago by the UN and Turkey, the initiative expired on July 17. Russia declined to renew it, however, saying key parts of the deal—meant to ensure its own agricultural exports—were never implemented.
Russia and Ukraine are both among the world’s top grain exporters.
No ships have departed from Ukrainian seaports since Russia announced its withdrawal from the agreement.
“Northwestern and southeastern areas of Black Sea international waters have been declared temporarily dangerous for navigation,” the defense ministry stated.
“Appropriate warnings regarding the suspension of safety guarantees … have been issued in line with established procedure,” it added.
A Cargo ship sails followed by a Ukrainian Coast Guard vessel through the Bystre river mouth, which connects the Black Sea and the Danube River on July 15, 2022. (Operational Command South press service/Handout via Reuters)Both Washington and Brussels have responded to the move by calling for stepped-up support—both financial and military—for Kyiv.
When asked about the Russian warning, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said: “We’re going to continue to support Ukraine’s effort to get Ukrainian grain to the markets that desperately need it.”
“As it relates to the grain initiative, we’re certainly going to do everything we can,” Ms. Jean-Pierre told reporters.
She also referred to a fresh military-aid package for Kyiv, which, she said, would include mine-clearing devices, artillery rounds, and other equipment “to help Ukraine better protect its ports.”
“These capabilities will become increasingly important, especially now that Russia has pulled out of the grain deal and has renewed attacks on [Ukrainian] port cities, as we have seen over the past two days,” she said on July 19.
The following day, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called for providing Ukraine with an additional 20 billion euros (approx. $22.4 billion) of military aid over the next four years.
“I presented a plan to ensure financial support for Ukraine in the next years, which will amount to quite an important amount of money,” Mr. Borrell said after meeting EU foreign ministers in Brussels.
He added: “I hope the ministers will support it.”
Kyiv, meanwhile, is now in discussions with Western officials about alternative mechanisms for ensuring the export of Ukrainian grain.
Some EU officials have suggested that grain might be transported overland rather than through the Black Sea, where the Russian Navy enjoys relative supremacy.
On July 18, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said “a number of ideas” were being considered. He did not elaborate.
The following day, Mr. Dujarric said the Russian Defense Ministry’s warning “underscores that we’re trying to work … in what is effectively a warzone.”
A local resident walks with a dog next to a building damaged during Russian missile and drone strikes near Odesa, Ukraine, on July 19, 2023. (Stringer/Reuters)Meanwhile, two Ukrainian port cities have remained subject to intermittent Russian bombardments for the past three days.
“Last night, the Russian Armed Forces continued delivering retaliatory strikes by seaborne and air-launched high-precision weapons against production workshops and storage sites of drone boats in parts of Odesa,” Russia’s defense ministry said on July 20.
Russian forces, it added, had also destroyed fuel and ammunition depots in Ukraine’s nearby port city of Mykolaiv.
“The goal of the strikes was achieved,” the ministry stated. “All designated targets were destroyed.”
No deaths have been reported as a result of the strikes, but at least 27 civilians were reportedly injured.
“The aggressor is deliberately hitting port infrastructure,” Oleh Kiper, Odesa’s regional governor, asserted on Telegram on July 20.
He added that administrative and residential buildings had also been damaged, along with the Chinese consulate in central Odesa.
“It shows the enemy does not pay attention to anything,” said Mr. Kiper, who posted an image purporting to show the consulate’s shattered windows.
Residential buildings in Mykolaiv, which sits roughly 75 miles northeast of Odesa, were also reportedly damaged.
The Epoch Times was unable to confirm the reports.
According to Moscow, the repeated strikes come in response to a July 17 attack on a strategic bridge linking the Crimean Peninsula to the Russian mainland.
The attack, which killed two civilians and damaged a roadway, was reportedly carried out with the use of seaborne attack drones.
Moscow accuses Kyiv of having carried out what it calls a “terrorist attack.” Kyiv, for its part, has yet to claim responsibility for the incident.
Reuters contributed to this report.