Since the start of the full-scale invasion, more than 200 civilian vessels have been damaged in Russian strikes, with over 70 of them attacked this year alone.
The announcement was made by Deputy Prime Minister for Restoration and Minister for Communities and Territories Development Oleksii Kuleba during the 137th session of the Council of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
“I called on the international maritime community to call things by their proper names: attacks on civilian vessels, port infrastructure, and seafarers are not ‘incidents’ or ‘shipping risks.’ They are acts of aggression by the Russian Federation. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, 264 civilians have been affected by Russian strikes, more than 960 port infrastructure facilities have been damaged or destroyed, and over 200 civilian vessels have been attacked,” Kuleba said.
In recent weeks, Russian strikes have again targeted merchant vessels and even Ukrainian conventional search-and-rescue ships carrying out humanitarian missions to assist civilian seafarers.
Despite this, Ukraine continues to maintain the operation of its maritime corridor, safeguard freedom of navigation, and fulfill its international obligations.
Kuleba also reminded participants that all seaports in the temporarily occupied territories remain officially closed under Ukrainian law and international maritime law. This status is reflected in the IMO's Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS). Any vessel entering these ports is doing so illegally. At the same time, Russia continues to use the ports to illegally export Ukrainian resources and support its armed forces.
“We call on flag states, port states, shipowners, operators, and insurers around the world to refrain from any activities that could facilitate or legitimize this,” Kuleba said.
He also reiterated Ukraine's call for the aggressor state to be expelled from the IMO.
A separate part of his address focused on Russia's so-called "shadow fleet," whose operations pose a serious threat to maritime safety, human life at sea, and the environment. Together with its international partners, Ukraine continues to raise this issue, urging states, shipowners, operators, and insurers to avoid any activities that could facilitate sanctions evasion or help finance Russia's war machine.
According to the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, Ukraine's statement at the IMO Council meeting was supported by the delegations of Cyprus (on behalf of the EU member states), the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan, Norway, Finland, the Netherlands, Ireland, Poland, Sweden, and the European Commission.
