Kiev has excluded Crimean port cities from the list of Ukraine’s international ports, the government’s website said today.
The document signed by the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, said:
"1. To introduce amendments to the Cabinet of Ministers' resolution of June 26, 2013 on approving the list of Ukraine’s sea ports open for foreign vessels, to exclude the port cities of Sevastopol, Yevpatoria, Yalta, Feodosiya and Kerch from the list of Ukraine’s international ports.
2. The Ministry of Infrastructure to implement within two weeks measures to publicize this decree in the official newspaper 'Messages to Mariners of Ukraine' and on the official website of this Ministry".
The Director of the Center for Applied Political Studies 'Penta', Volodymyr Fesenko, told Vestnik Kavkaza that the decision of the Ukrainian authorities is explained very simply.
"This is a sanctions regime. The territory is occupied. And Crimea, including the named cities, has the status of an occupied territory. There are international sanctions, including restricting the use of these cities as ports, so it is logical that Ukraine not only join these sanctions, but also requires compliance with the sanctions regime from its other international partners," the expert said.
A member of the Federation Council Committee for International Affairs, Igor Morozov, told Vestnik Kavkaza that "Ukraine should think about its cities, it needs to think about how Ukraine will hold a victory parade dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the Great Patriotic War. But Sevastopol and other cities of Crimea are Russian territory, this is a subject of the Russian Federation, which is already integrated into the legislative, administrative and economic space of Russia. Therefore, any steps toward delisting the international ports or cities of Ukraine does not apply to the status of our cities, which generally are cities of Russian glory and Russian weapons," the expert assured.
