Turkey Restricts Black Sea Shipping, Urges Moratorium

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has called on Russia and Ukraine to implement a mutual moratorium on attacking commercial vessels in the Black Sea, warning that the conflict is increasingly threatening international shipping. “The conflict has spread to the entire Black Sea. At first, they targeted ports and warships. Now they are attacking all merchant ships without exception,” Fidan said, according to Le Temps. “Ships belonging to Turks or flying the Turkish flag are also being hit.”JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. Following Fidan’s remarks, Turkey began restricting the movement of commercial vessels heading toward the Black Sea. According to Bloomberg, Turkey’s Directorate General of Coastal Safety informed several ships bound for the Russian port of Novorossiysk that it is currently withholding transit permits or taking longer to process applications for passage through the Dardanelles Strait. While Novorossiysk is a primary hub for Russian oil and grain exports, some vessels were reportedly informed that the transit restrictions could also apply to ships heading for Ukrainian ports. Turkish authorities have not provided an official reason for the delays. Escalating strikes on commercial fleets Fidan’s call for a moratorium and the subsequent shipping restrictions follow a dangerous escalation in the maritime war. Earlier this week, the Turkish Foreign Ministry reported that several Turkish crew members were injured during drone attacks on two Turkish vessels in the region. Other Topics of Interest Russian Strikes Target Kharkiv High-Rises, Odesa and Pavlohrad, Killing 2 Russian forces launch massive weekend drone, missile, and guided bomb attacks across Ukraine, killing at least two people in Kharkiv and injuring dozens in Odesa and Pavlohrad. The violence peaked in July. As part of a broader operation to blockade occupied Crimea, Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces began conducting daily strikes against Russian transport vessels and the so-called “shadow fleet” in the Black and Azov seas. Simultaneously, Russia launched a massive campaign against Ukrainian maritime logistics. In July alone, Ukraine recorded 35 Russian attacks on ships in port, 22 attacks on vessels at sea, and 67 strikes on port infrastructure. The bombardment forced shipowners to suspend voyages to Odesa, leaving the ports empty for nearly two weeks during the peak of the summer harvest season. US intervention protects Kazakh oil The Turkish restrictions on traffic heading to Novorossiysk come just days after the US intervened to protect global energy markets from the Black Sea crossfire. Following intense lobbying by Chevron and the Trump administration, Ukraine recently agreed to stop targeting non-Russian oil tankers and maritime infrastructure near the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) terminal in Novorossiysk. The US-brokered deal was reached after Ukrainian drone strikes in July disrupted crude loadings at the CPC terminal, which handles approximately 2% of the world’s daily crude oil supply. The agreement stipulates that vessels will not be targeted by Kyiv provided they are not Russian-owned, do not carry Russian cargo, and do not fall under Ukrainian sanctions. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.