MOSCOW: Russia will treat all ships sailing through the waters of the Black Sea to Ukrainian ports as “potential carriers of military cargo,” the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. Russia said on Wednesday that “due to the termination of the Black Sea Initiative and the reduction of the maritime humanitarian corridor, all ships en route to Ukrainian ports in the Black Sea will be considered as potential carriers of military cargo from 12 midnight on July 20.” The ministry said that the countries whose flags would be present on those ships would be viewed as parties to the conflict by Ukraine, Xinhua news agency reported. It added that several areas in the northwestern and southeastern parts of the international waters of the Black Sea have been declared temporarily dangerous to navigation. Russia and Ukraine signed separately with Turkey and the United Nations the Black Sea Grain Initiative in Istanbul in July 2022, allowing Ukraine to export its grain and other agricultural products from its Black Sea ports. Moscow suspended its participation in the agreement on July 17, 2023, saying it would return to the agreement as soon as the Russian part of the agreements was completed.
