Ukrainian security officers have detained a foreign-flagged cargo vessel in the port of Odesa after investigators linked it to Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” and to earlier illegal shipments of Ukrainian grain from occupied Crimea.
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) confirmed that the ship was intercepted this week after arriving to load a consignment of steel pipes.
According to the SBU, the vessel’s owner was already under sanctions imposed by Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council and had repeatedly changed the ship’s name and listed beneficiaries in an attempt to evade restrictions.
The agency reported that the ship had been active in Russia’s interests and had systematically called at closed Crimean ports before the full-scale invasion.
Investigators stated that the vessel entered Sevastopol at least seven times shortly before Russia launched its full invasion in February 2022. The SBU said that in January 2021, the ship illegally loaded almost 7,000 tonnes of Ukrainian
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