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Freighter "Fulmar S": Ship traffic towards Ukraine is slowly starting up again
Photo: STRINGER / REUTERS
For the first time since the Russian naval blockade was officially lifted, a cargo ship has docked in a Ukrainian port.
"The bulk carrier 'Fulmar S' has arrived at the port of Chornomorsk and is ready for loading," announced the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure on its Telegram channel.
In the past few days, the first ships have left Ukrainian ports - they have been stuck there since the beginning of the war.
The first to leave Odessa on Monday was the freighter Razoni, which was loaded with grain.
He's on his way to Lebanon.
However, the arrival planned for Sunday has been delayed, according to the Ukrainian embassy.
She didn't give any details.
"We're slowly ramping up shipping again," Infrastructure Minister Olexandr Kubrakov said on Sunday.
The resumption of shipping traffic and the associated grain shipments from Ukraine are important for stabilizing food prices worldwide.
So far, eight ships carrying grain have left Ukrainian ports since the beginning of August.
They were among dozens of freighters that had been stranded there since the war began in February because of the Russian naval blockade and the Ukrainian military's mining of its own ports.
With the arrival of the "Fulmar S," the grain corridor now has an "entry and exit," according to Infrastructure Minister Kubrakov.
This is an important signal for the markets.
Risky crossing
The Fulmar S, flying the flag of Barbados, is docked in the port of Chornomorsk, which is part of the Odessa catchment area.
In the future, the Ukraine also wants to obtain the release of the Mykolaiv seaport for grain transport.
A corresponding proposal had been made to the UN and Turkey, said Kubrakow.
The aim is to increase grain exports to three million tons per month.
The crossing is very risky for the sailors.
Oleg Grigoriuk from the Ukrainian seafarers' union MTWTU recently said that many of his colleagues are only willing to sail through minefields out of necessity: »In my opinion, the crossing is still very dangerous.
The safe corridor isn't too safe as long as Russian missiles stay in the area."
bbr/dpa/Reuters
