Ukraine is discussing a possible reopening of Black Sea civilian shipping with Turkey, Egypt and India, with agricultural exports a particular priority, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. In a Bloomberg interview carried by gCaptain, he outlined a proposal to protect food-carrying vessels serving both Ukrainian and Russian ports, but said Moscow opposed the arrangement.
Under the proposal described by Zelenskyy, Turkey, Egypt and India would seek safe navigation for ships flying their flags. Vessels would carry food from ports in both countries, backed by reciprocal commitments not to attack them. Zelenskyy said the arrangement could pair a ship travelling to a Ukrainian port with another heading to a Russian port. He said Russian resistance persisted despite repeated approaches by intermediaries from the three countries.
Ukraine’s Black Sea ports are its principal outlet for food exports, according to the report. Grain shipments through those ports have been halted since August amid Russian air attacks on port facilities and vessels. Zelenskyy said rail transport could not handle the volume normally moved by sea, making the search for protected maritime access a central part of Kyiv’s efforts to restore agricultural shipments.
Alongside the navigation talks, Kyiv has asked the European Union to revive its solidarity lanes programme. The initiative enabled Ukrainian grain to move through European rail networks and ports in the early stages of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Zelenskyy said Ukraine wanted those routes reinstated to facilitate exports, while stressing the need for the grain among its buyers.
The disruption also has a connection to the oil shipping trade. The gCaptain report said heavy attacks on Ukraine’s civilian port infrastructure followed Ukrainian strikes last summer against Russia’s shadow fleet, which primarily transports sanctioned crude oil and fuel products. Ukraine can currently export only 38% of its normal volumes, the report said, citing the country’s Agriculture Ministry.