Russia began building a bridge across the Kerch Strait in its navigable part. The Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation in August and September for 23 days in total wants to completely prohibit navigation through the strait during the installation of the Kerch bridge. This is stated in the draft order of the Ministry, posted on the Federal Portal of Draft Normative Acts. The corresponding letter to the sea agents has already been sent out and. Captain of the seaport of Kerch. Got this information through the media and Kiev.

In particular, it is reported that after installation of bridge arches under them can pass ships, the length of which does not exceed 160 meters, the width is 31 meters, the overhead clearance is 33 meters. Draft of the vessel should not be more than 8 meters. Such restrictions outraged the Ukrainian side, because Russia did not agree with Kiev on the ban and restrictions for ships that enter the waters of the Azov Sea in Ukrainian ports through the Kerch Strait. The position of Ukraine in the interview with DW was explained by Deputy Infrastructure Minister Yuri Lavrenyuk.

- Have you already calculated the possible losses that Ukraine can be caused by the construction of a bridge by Russia and further restrictions on navigation through the Kerch Strait?.

- Limitations introduced unilaterally. No one from Ukraine agreed this. Ukraine withdrew from negotiations on the construction of the Kerch bridge in 2013. On our side, its construction is not considered at all. Those sediment parameters that Russia independently establishes can cause significant damage to our Berdyansk and Mariupol trade ports on the Azov Sea. There ships come with a minimum draft of 9.6 meters, and a maximum of 14. These are large ships such as Panamax.

At the same time, Russia sets a maximum draft of 8 meters. This is about a ship the size of two ship's tugboats. I think that during the ban on shipping we will have problems, because the vessels are already chartered for half a year ahead. We decided that losses for only 23 days will amount to half a billion hryvnia, which will not receive our state ports. What will happen next when they build a bridge and these restrictions will be permanent? No answer yet.

- What measures does Ukraine take?.

"We held an emergency meeting at the Ministry of Infrastructure, urgently appealed to the Foreign Ministry, so that the diplomats prepared a note of protest and took measures to attract the international community to prevent the unilateral introduction of restrictions in the construction of this bridge. We also prepared an appeal to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of the United Nations, as Russia grossly violates the safety of shipping at sea.

- What exactly are the violations of the safety of navigation?.

- It's about the ice campaign. In winter, the Sea of ??Azov partially freezes. If Russia starts construction on a navigable course, ice on bridge piles will be delayed and ice caps will form. Because of this, in winter the movement along the Kerch-Enikal canal, the only way for the passage of large ships through the Kerch Strait, will be closed in general. But this is the gate of the Azov Sea. It will be artificially blocked: there will be no entrance, no exit from it.

- In Russia, too, there are ports on the Azov Sea - Taganrog, Rostov-on-Don. These restrictions will apply to ships that go to these ports?.

- At us metallurgical combines carry in Мариупольский a port raw materials, therefrom send metal production for export. For this, large Panamax type vessels are involved, which take on board 100 thousand tons. Russian ports on the Azov Sea do not transport particularly large cargoes. Perhaps they want to build a drawbridge, but we have not seen an official project. He did not agree with us.

- How much cargo is handled in Mariupol and Berdyansk ports?.

- In May this year, the Mariupol port shipped 979 thousand tons of cargo, Berdyansk - almost 197 thousand tons. The bulk of cargo is exported. For a month in these ports there were more than 110 calls. Basically it is metallurgical products, grains, oil, clay.

- If sending cargo by sea from Berdyansk and Mariupol ports will be blocked, is it possible to deliver products from the Azov region by land?.

- There is a railway branch Kamish-Zarya-Volnovaha, which goes towards Mariupol. You can deliver the products of metallurgical plants, agro-industrial complex to the Black Sea - to the ports of Kherson, Nikolaev, Olvia, Odessa. But how much will it be cost-effective? What is the price of that product? Will this benefit enterprises that are currently working near ports? I think this will be a huge loss for business and for our public ports.

- The construction of the Kerch bridge by Russia was known before. Why did you just sound the alarm right now and start counting losses?.

- We do not track their construction. As soon as we receive information about unilateral introduction of restrictions, we promptly react.

- Do you have contacts with the Ministry of Transport of Russia?.

- What contacts can there be with the aggressor state? We do not have any contact with the Russian side. We receive information from the media. No one officially informed Ukraine about it.

Everything is done unilaterally with violation of all international agreements.

- There is an impression that now Ukraine is in a state of stalemate. How do you see the way out of it?.

- We count on the support of the International Maritime Organization. We reported the situation to the President and Prime Minister of Ukraine. I think that everything will be resolved through negotiations at the highest level.

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