Sanctions & Crimea - Kerch Commercial Sea Port

Members will already be aware of various sanctions in place following the annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol in Spring 2014, as outlined in previous Club Circulars (click here) and News Alerts (click here). Additionally, the Club has been informed by Interlegal, a firm of Ukrainian lawyers, that Members transiting to and from the sea of Azov should be aware that Kerch Commercial Sea Port, which exerts control over the Strait of Kerch and the Kerch Canal, is a sanctioned entity under the US and EU Sanctions legislation. Members should therefore note that the payment of canal dues and any other payments made to the Kerch Commercial Sea Port would be in breach of sanctions legislation.

In the meantime, Members are reminded, as detailed in the Club’s News Alert of 16 July 2014 (click here), that the Ukrainian Ministry of Infrastructure issued a Directive “On Closure of Sea Ports”, officially closing all ports in the territory of Crimea, with the consequence that vessels calling in Ukrainian ports after trading to/from a Crimean Port, including Kerch, may face potential delays/detentions/fines.