Five ships loaded full of “tens of thousands of tons” of grain have vanished from a port in Ukraine, and reports indicate that the vessels and their haul were stolen by Russians. The five freight ships were apparently swiped in the port city of Berdyansk in southeastern Ukraine.
The ships were towed away right into the Sea of Azov by Russian tugboats, the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture and also Information Policy’s communications arm claimed on Monday, citing the region’s governor as well as eyewitnesses.
“According to the residents of Berdyansk, there were 5 ships being loaded there. Some of them were fully loaded — we can see from the customs documents — some were partially loaded. A few days ago, these ships disappeared from the port of Berdyansk. People say they were driven away. Russian tugs,” Oleksandr Starukh, governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, said on Monday.
“There are tens of thousands of tons of grain loaded” on the ships, Starukh noted.
Russians steal five grain carriers from Berdyansk port.
Oleksandr Starukh, governor of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, said on March 21 that the stolen ships were carrying tens of thousands of tons of grain. Eyewitnesses say the ships were stolen by Russian tugboats.#stoprussia
— Stratcom Centre UA (@StratcomCentre) March 21, 2022
Considering the rates of numerous grains on the assets markets, a haul of that size is most likely to be worth a small fortune. Wheat, as an example, shot up to a record-breaking cost of $12.94 per bushel on March 8. It is up in price by 70% over the last month, according to futures agreements with the Chicago Board of Trade.
According to Ukrainian state media Ukrinform,
“Berdyansk is temporarily captured by the enemy. On the territory of the city there are Russian military equipment and soldiers. Local authorities refused to cooperate with the occupiers.”
Ukraine is the world’s second-largest grain shipper and also has 15 vendor ports along the Sea of Azov and also the Black Sea.
“Did you think the occupiers only steal TVs?” True, they steal everything. But this grain will be very expensive for them, ” Ukrainian Rada (Parliament) Member Oleksiy Honcharenko commented via Telegram on the incident.
Russian forces took control of the Sea of Azov and also closed delivery in as well as out of it at the start of the war last month. Numerous merchant ships have actually been stranded in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov therefore.
