Ukraine is ready to support Turkey’s initiative for a mutual moratorium on attacks against civilian vessels, commercial ports and energy infrastructure in the Black Sea.
Ukraine’s Ambassador to Turkey Nariman Dzhelyal said this at a press briefing in Ankara marking the 35th anniversary of Ukraine’s independence.
“Ukraine is ready to support Turkey’s initiative, which provides for a mutual moratorium on attacks against civilian vessels, commercial ports and energy infrastructure in the Black Sea. [...] The Black Sea should not be a battlefield, but a sea of peace, trade and cooperation,” Dzhelyal said.
The Ukrainian ambassador stressed that Ukraine supports guaranteeing freedom of civilian navigation and called on shipowners, operators and crews to take wartime risks into account and comply with navigational warnings.
“The Ukrainian side is ready to cooperate with the Turkish side to help clarify the circumstances of relevant incidents and ensure the safety of civilian maritime transport,” Dzhelyal said.
The ambassador noted that since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, at least 1,054 Ukrainian port infrastructure facilities have been damaged or destroyed by Russia. Attacks on 232 civilian vessels have been recorded, more than 30 of them in the summer of 2026 alone.
According to Dzhelyal, 307 Ukrainian and foreign nationals have been killed or injured as a result of these attacks.
