The blockade of Kerch Strait RF: Omelyan called the Kremlin's cynical goal on Azov

Ukrainian Minister of Infrastructure, Volodymyr Omelyan, said the following, reports Radio Liberty

To read: The Kremlin waits for a long time: the EU waited While Russia was preparing at the Azov Climb

He noted that many shipowners, realizing that the waiting time for the Kerch Strait was too long, were redirecting their vessels to the ports of the Black Sea or even to from other destinations.

"This is bad because it affects the economy of the whole region.And of course, it was a well-thought operation in Russia aimed at destabilizing Marioupol, Berdyansk and, more generally, the whole region, "said the manager. There are currently no queues and no delays in crossing the Kerch Strait. However, Russia still intends to destabilize Ukraine Priazovye in order to pave the land corridor towards annexed Crimea.

But we understand that all this is done manually. As the international pressure on Russia is very strong now, they claim that everything is fine. As soon as the pressure is slightly lower or there is another irritation, of course, they will return to this practice. Because their goal is to destabilize the sea of ​​Azov and, of course, to create a corridor for Crimea and, I think, to continue its expansion,
Omelian said.

In addition, the minister added that the government was striving to ensure the normal operation of the ports, and it is still stable. But, according to him, since the beginning of the Russian aggression, the revenues of Mariupol and Berdyansk have decreased considerably, which has only made their economic situation worse.

Previously, the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine, Volodymyr Omelyan, had said that the traffic was blocked by Russia. The Ukrainian ports of Berdyansk and Mariupol are forced to move to a 4-day workweek and reduce personnel via the Kerch Strait

. tug of the Ukrainian army. It is known that two small armored Ukrainian artillery boats and raids were conducted in accordance with international standards from the port of Odessa to the port of Mariupol

However, Russia said that Ukrainian warships would have illegally penetrated into the temporarily closed waters of the Russian Sea. and continued the movement towards the Kerch Strait. A group of Ukrainian ships continued their journey to Mariupol. However, during the withdrawal from the Kerch Strait, Russian border ships opened fire on Ukrainian ships, injuring six Ukrainian soldiers. Russia also seized two Ukrainian ships and captured 24 Ukrainian sailors, who were subsequently arrested in occupied Crimea and taken to SIZO Moscow.

Ukraine then introduced a military state in 10 regions until December 26th. In addition, on November 30, Ukraine banned the entry into its territory of Russian citizens aged 16 to 60 years.

Russia is no longer the first month of the world to block foreign ships going to the Ukrainian ports of the Azov Sea. As a result, the Ukrainian economy suffers considerable losses.