Turkish authorities have lifted the temporary detention of a Russian-flagged general cargoship suspected of carrying looted Ukrainian grain.
The government in Kyiv, which had successfully intervened to persuade Turkey on Sunday to probe the 7,000-dwt general cargo ship Zhibek Zholy (built 2016) and prevent it from unloading its cargo, condemned the decision.
“Ignoring the appeal of the Ukrainian side, in the evening of 6 July the ship was released by Turkish authorities,” Ukraine’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
At the same time, the ministry expressed its “deep disappointment” for “this unacceptable situation” and requested the Turkish side “to provide exhaustive answers” for its actions by summoning Turkey’s ambassador to Kyiv.
Turkey’s foreign ministry has not responded to the statement, and major Turkish media have not reported about the development.
It is unclear whether the Zhibek Zholy was allowed to unload its cargo after being held at the anchorage of Karasu, just east of Istanbul.
Vessel tracking data still shows the vessel at Karasu but the latest automatic information system signal available is from at least 18 hours ago.
The Zhibek Zholy is believed to have been the first ship to carry grain out of Berdyansk, a Ukrainian port on the Azov Sea that Russian forces occupied after invading the country on 24 February.
Ukraine has been accusing Russia of illicitly profiting from the export of looted grain.
Speaking in Moscow on Monday, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that the issue needed to be investigated and that the Zhibek Zholy was carrying grain as part of a contract agreement between Turkey and Estonia.
The Zhibek Zholy’s registered owner KTZ Express, a company based in Kazakshtan, told Reuters that the ship was under bareboat charter to Green-Line, an unsanctioned Russian company, and that “all sanctions and restrictions” would be adhered to.
KTZ Express has not responded to TradeWinds’ request for comment and carries no statement about the issue on its website.
War in Ukraine has led to a near-complete standstill in the country’s grain exports. Ukraine’s major export terminals on the north of the Black Sea shut down from day one of the conflict.
