By any reasonable definition, the Russian blockade of maritime trade with Ukraine in the Black Sea amounts to piracy, or at least the threat of piracy.. The reaction of the international community was disappointing.

“By accepting Russia’s implicit threats to sink foreign-flagged merchant ships in international waters, we allowed the Kremlin to successfully blackmail the world. This blackmail continues,” Kurt Volker, former U.S. special envoy to Ukraine talks, writes in an article for the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA)..

He recalls that on May 29, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said: “If everything remains as it is, and apparently it will be, then it will be necessary to proceed from the fact that the agreement is no longer valid.”. The announcement came just 12 days after a two-month extension of an earlier grain agreement under which tons of Ukrainian grain can be exported by ship to world markets, provided the ships follow a specially defined “green” corridor.. And before entering the Bosphorus Strait, the UN, Russia, Ukraine and Turkey will pass inspection. Only "

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Even when the grain agreement is operating normally, guaranteeing a limited flow of grain exports, it creates a legal front that legitimizes Russian military action to block all other types of Ukrainian exports by sea.. Volker notes that Russian threats are not just words. Russian warships lay sea mines and fire rockets at commercial vessels, regardless of the flag under which they are heading to or trying to leave Ukrainian ports.

“The Grain Agreement gives Russia an unprecedented role in overseeing shipping in the Black Sea, despite the fact that it has legal rights to only 10% of the Black Sea coast and is a party to the Montreux Convention, which was designed to ensure free trade through the Bosporus and Dardanelles.. The convention places on Turkey, and not on Russia, the role of a guarantor that the freedom of navigation will not be violated,” the American diplomat emphasizes..

He is convinced that it is time to break the Russian blockade. Walker lists steps to take to achieve this breakthrough.

At the political level, the US, UK, Netherlands, G7, EU and all NATO allies should demand that Russia immediately abandon indirect threats to normal commercial shipping in the international waters of the Black Sea and state their demand to immediately open Ukrainian business ports. This policy must be supported by a number of practical diplomatic, economic and humanitarian steps..

First, Western allies and Ukraine should engage in direct dialogue with Turkey on practical measures to restore Ankara's negotiated role in securing freedom of navigation across the straits..

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Secondly, to alleviate the humanitarian problem posed by naval mines (some of which have been unanchored and are now free-floating in the Black Sea), mine-clearing capabilities need to be increased.. Unmanned mine clearance vessels are especially important.

“Ukraine expects minesweepers from the UK. But the Netherlands, Germany, Canada and the US have the capacity to assist in mine clearance.. Special unmanned vessels remain of particular importance. Since none of these countries is a belligerent in the war, with the support of Turkey, such vessels could be deployed directly in the Black Sea for humanitarian demining or, if this facilitates transit through the straits, transferred to Romania as excess defense equipment,” Volker suggests..

Romania is both a NATO ally and a Black Sea coastal state that could conduct demining operations from its port in Constanta. As an alternative to entering the Black Sea through the straits, some demining vessels could also enter the Romanian part of the Black Sea in transit along the Danube River.

Third, as part of the Ukraine Reconstruction Conference, governments should establish war risk insurance programs for shipping companies that trade directly with Ukraine.. Insurance should cover both ships and cargo. While the world's largest companies may still opt out, many shipping companies that already use the grain corridor will be interested in expanding their trade, provided they are fully insured..

Fourth, NATO countries should participate in operations to ensure freedom of navigation in the international waters of the Black Sea in order to comply with the principle of unhindered transit.. They can accept limited contingents of Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania, as they are NATO members with access to the Black Sea coast.

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“Or other NATO members could temporarily enter ships in the Black Sea for such purposes in accordance with the terms of the Montreux Convention, since the members of the Alliance are not belligerents in the conflict,” Volker explains..

And finally, the American diplomat believes that NATO countries should warn that any attacks by any actors on commercial shipping in the international waters of the Black Sea will be considered an act of piracy and will not be tolerated..

“Such attacks can be met with a direct military response in accordance with international law.. NATO countries have the means to do this, even if their ships do not enter the Black Sea,” Volker emphasizes..

Some may argue that ending the Russian blockade will be perceived by Russia as a provocation or lead to direct conflict between the West and Russia.. Here Volker advises the US to remember its history. The modern U.S. Navy was created from the Naval Act of 1794, when, in the face of piracy off the Barbary Coast of North Africa, Congress first approved the construction of warships to protect American merchant ships in the Mediterranean.. Since that time, the protection of freedom of navigation has remained the main function of the US Navy.. Allowing such restrictions to exist in the international waters of the Black Sea is a major departure from longstanding US freedom of navigation policy..

Each year, the U.S. Department of Defense submits to Congress a report on freedom of navigation with an appendix listing states whose maritime claims restrict such freedom.. The latest report was published on April 21 and covers 2022.

“There is not a single mention in it of Russia's restriction of freedom of navigation in the Black Sea. This is likely because the Montreux Convention places treaty restrictions on military navigation through the straits, meaning that freedom of navigation is already limited by treaty.. But the terms of the Convention do nothing to prevent the free passage of commercial shipping, quite the contrary.. It is the actions of Russia since February 2022 that impose restrictions, ”the author emphasizes.

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The Great Port of Odessa, which is a network of several ports, plays a vital role in Ukraine's export economy.. The country's road and rail network leading to Europe is already operating at full capacity, but is still not strong enough to handle all Ukrainian imports and exports.. Time does not stand still, since the Ukrainian harvest will produce at least 60 million tons of grain, which should freely enter the world markets.

“The West has understandably focused on providing military equipment to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian attacks.. Too little attention has been paid to the maritime sphere,” Volker emphasizes..

Supporting freedom of navigation in the Black Sea is in line with long-standing US and other policy and is primarily for economic rather than military purposes.. Russia made an incredibly daring and ill-conceived attack on international shipping in the open waters of the Black Sea. It's time to expose the Russian bluff and open the port of Odessa forever, - Volker believes.