Statement for side-event
“Threats for Human Dimension Issues in Maritime Sector: Ukrainian Examples”
Human Dimension Implementation Meeting 2019, 20 September 2019
Distinguished participants,
In my turn, I want to remind You, that after the incident on 25th of November, 2018 when three Ukrainian naval vessels with their crews were captured by Russian Board Guard in Black Sea out of territorial waters, this case was extremely politicised and Ukrainian naval mariners were imprisoned as “suspected” in such absurd crime as “violation the State Board of Russia”.
At the same time nobody investigated in Russia the real direct actions of Russian authorities in Kerch Strait that physically blocked off on that day the shipping passage by two tugs “Bystryi” and “Gandvik” also as the oil tanker “Neyma”, that created the high risks for crews of dozens of trade vessels.
As Ukraine applied on this incident to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, this Tribunal, sitting on 25th of May, 2019 in Hamburg, made, after Ukrainian request for the prescription of provisional measures, the special Order.
Tribunal demanded that Russia shall immediately release the Ukrainian naval vessels “Berdyansk”, “Nikopol” and “Yani Kapu”, and return them to the custody of Ukraine; immediately release the 24 detained Ukrainian servicemen and allow them to return to Ukraine.
Also Tribunal pointed that Ukraine and the Russia shall refrain from taking any action which might aggravate or extend the dispute submitted to the special arbitral tribunal. Tribunal decided that Ukraine and the Russia shall each submit to the Tribunal the initial report on execution those demands not later than 25th June, 2019.
Till the 25th June Russia did not act or proclaim anything that allowed to suggest the future execution by this state the Tribunal`s Order or its refusal to act in compliance with the Order. In this last day of established term Russia proposed Ukraine by diplomatic note to recognise the criminal case against detained Ukrainian servicemen and to start the negotiations on possible procedural decision of this case, but any certain proposals for real mechanism of releasing the vessels and the crews was not done by Russia. More, Russia informed untruthfully on 25th June, 2019 the Tribunal on “specific procedural measures” allegedly proposed to Ukraine.
But later, regarding to statement of Presidential Offices of Ukraine and Russia, President of Russia did three telephone calls with Ukrainian President, pointing own demands, connected with releasing the detained Ukrainian Naval servicemen. So detention and future releasing of those servicemen, at 7th September 2019 became possible only as Ukraine agreed to release from Ukrainian prisons some convicted persons, pointed by Russian chief authorities.
Such situation allows us to determine the statute of such Naval servicemen kept by Russians, not only as prisoners of war, captured by act of perfidy (as the cease-fire regime in waters around Crimea was established by special agreement in December, 2014), but also as the hostages, kept by authorities, committing the act of state terrorism.
At the same time as Russia did not release till today the three Ukrainian naval vessels, abovementioned Order of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, in this case did not executed by Russia in its main part. Such situation confirm totally the full absence of will to execute the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea by Russian authorities in Black and Azov Sea waters. It establish new serious risks in area of maritime safety and security for all states, business entities and crews, engaged to the shipping in this OSCE area.
Olena Stefurak, European Youth of Ukraine