Ukraine says it has seized a foreign cargo ship and detained its captain. Kyiv claims that the ship was illegally exporting grain from the annexed Crimean peninsula, AFP reported.
Since Russia seized large tracts of agricultural land in Ukraine in early 2022, Kyiv has accused Moscow of illegally harvesting and sending grain produced in the occupied territory to third countries.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office announced that it had "confiscated" a foreign ship in the Odesa region that had previously exported agricultural products through the port of Sevastopol.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said it detained the ship's captain, accusing him of violating the rules for entering occupied territory.
The SBU clarified that the grain exported by the ship, Usko Mfu, was produced in southern Ukraine.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison for the captain, the SBU reported. Prosecutors identified him as a citizen of Azerbaijan.
Prosecutors said 12 other foreign crew members were on board when the ship was seized, without specifying their nationalities or whether they would also face charges.
The Cameroonian-flagged ship illegally entered the port of Sevastopol in November 2023 and was loaded with more than 3,000 tons of agricultural products "intended for a Turkish company."
"In order to conceal the illegal activity, the automatic identification system (AI) of the ship was turned off before its entry into the port of Sevastopol, which is a gross violation of maritime safety requirements," the prosecutor's office said.
The ship was confiscated in the Ukrainian port of Reni, where documents issued by the port authorities of Sevastopol were found. | BGNES
