International

Ukraine cargo ships depart via humanitarian corridor

Two cargo ships have left the Pivdennyi port near Odessa, Ukraine, on Friday, raising to four the number of ships that have left Ukrainian deep-water ports in the Black Sea since Russia withdrew from an agreement to secure passage for grain ships, Reuters and news.ro reported.

Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov said the Anna-Theresa and Ocean Courtesy ships left the Pivdennyi port via a temporary corridor established for civilian vessels.

Russia has blocked Ukrainian ports since it invaded its neighbour in February 2022 and has threatened to treat all ships as potential military targets after it withdrew from the Grain Initiative, a year-long agreement brokered by the United Nations and Turkey, in July.

In response, Ukraine announced a "humanitarian corridor" that passes near the western coast of the Black Sea, near Romania and Bulgaria. Two ships blocked in Ukrainian ports since the beginning of the invasion have so far been able to use it to leave.

Anna-Theresa and Ocean Courtesy are carrying 56,000 tons of raw iron and 172,000 tons of iron ore concentrate, respectively, Oleksandr Kubrakov wrote on the X platform.

Data on the LSEG interactive map showed the two ships on Friday more than 10 km from shore, using their engines and heading southeast.

Ukrainian MP Oleksi Honcharenko, who is from Odessa, also posted on the Telegram app on Friday that two ships had been seen near the city. He posted a photo showing two ships in the distance.

Translation by Iurie Tataru

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