Ukrainian authorities have charged the second senior officer of a small cargo ship detained since July for trading in Crimea — a part of the country annexed by Russia.
The region’s exiled prosecutors’ office, still under the control of the Kyiv government, filed charges against the unidentified crew member of the 2,850-dwt Usko MFU (built 1982) on Wednesday.
He faces up to five years in prison, as does the master — a citizen of Azerbaijan — who was commanding the ship when Ukraine arrested it in July.
Kyiv has vowed to prosecute all vessels trading in Black Sea ports brought under Moscow’s control after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
In practice, however, Ukraine can do little against the trade, which continues to flourish as grain from Russian-occupied regions is sold and then transported to other parts of the world, mainly in the Middle East.
Ukraine managed to get its hands on the Usko MFU because the ship sailed within the reach of Kyiv authorities just a few months after calling in Sevastopol in Crimea.
Authorities seized the vessel in early July in the Danube near the Ukrainian port of Reni, where it is held.
According to Ukraine, the ship loaded more than 3,000 tonnes of agricultural products in Sevastopol in November 2023, to be carried to Turkey.
At the end of May, the ship is said to have called in Sevastopol again to unload another, unspecified Turkish cargo while its AIS was switched off.
The vessel’s owner is unknown, but it is managed by Usko Shipping Co, based in Giresun, Turkey.
