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Belarus News

09 May 2023

Why the EU is Restricting Grain Imports from Ukraine

The European Commission has announced restrictions on the imports of Ukrainian wheat, maize, rapeseed and sunflower seed in Poland, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria until June 5.The move led to Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria lifting unilateral import bans they had imposed citing the need to protect their farmers. Romania had not banned imports.Here are some of the issues:WHY IS UKRAINE EXPORTING THROUGH EASTERN EUROPE?Ukraine mainly exported agricultural products…

15 Mar 2023

Can Ukraine's Grain Corridor Ease the Global Food Crisis?

© Aleksandr Lesik / Adobe Stock

Russia has proposed that a U.N.-backed initiative that has enabled grains to be exported from Ukraine's Black Sea ports should be renewed for just 60 days.The deal to free up grain exports from Ukraine's southern Black Sea ports, which expires later this month, has previously been renewed for 120 days and there are concerns a shorter extension could cause logistical issues.Reached in July last year, it created a protected sea transit corridor and was designed to alleviate global food shortages by allowing exports to resume from three ports in Ukraine…

24 Feb 2023

Insurers Count the Cost of Ships Snagged in Ukraine Crisis

© olyasolodenko / Adobe Stock

Insurers are facing half a billion dollars in claims for up to 60 commercial ships still stuck in Ukraine a year after the start of the war with Russia, industry sources said.When the conflict started, more than 90 merchant ships - many with food cargoes onboard - and some 2,000 crew members were caught in Ukraine and unable to leave due to the fighting.Curtailed shipments from major grain exporter Ukraine played a role in the resulting global food crisis.According to shipping and insurance industry assessments…

06 Jan 2023

Black Sea Shipping Rates Soar 20% as Reinsurers Cut Cover

Lifting cargo cranes, ships and grain dryer in Sea Port of Odessa, Black Sea, Ukraine. Copyright Oleksandra/AdobeStock

Costs for hiring ships to transport commodities from the Black Sea have risen by more than a fifth since the start of the year, reflecting higher war risk insurance rates, industry sources said.The Black Sea is crucial for the shipment of grain, oil and oil products. Its waters are shared by Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania and Turkey, as well as Russia and Ukraine. Since Jan. 1, when policies are renewed, reinsurers that provide financial protection for insurance companies have added exclusions for ships and planes for Belarus…

29 Dec 2022

Ship Insurers to Cancel War Cover for Russia, Ukraine

© Evgeny / Adobe Stock

Ship insurers said they are cancelling war risk cover across Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, following an exit from the region by reinsurers in the face of steep losses.Reinsurers, who insure the insurers, typically renew their 12-month contracts with insurance clients on Jan. 1, giving them the first opportunity to scale back exposure since the war in Ukraine started, after being hit this year by losses related to the conflict and from Hurricane Ian in Florida.P&I (protection and indemnity) clubs American…

12 Jul 2022

Could the US Ship More LNG to Europe?

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The United States, the world's top natural gas producer, wants to send more liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe to help its allies break their dependence on Russian gas after Moscow invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.But U.S. exports are limited by the country's liquefaction capacity and an ongoing outage at Freeport LNG's plant after the second-biggest U.S. LNG export facility was hit by fire in June.Russia, once Europe's biggest gas supplier, has already cut exports for various reasons this year…

24 May 2022

Ukraine Seeking Ways to Get its Grain Out

 A grain carrier in a Ukrainian port back in 2021 - ©Elena/AdobeStock

Ukraine is seeking ways to get grain and vegetable oils out of the country by breaking a months-long blockade of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea by the Russian navy and moving more by land.The war, together with Western sanctions against Russia, have sent the price of grain, cooking oil, fertilizer, and energy soaring.That in turn, is threatening a global food crisis as many countries count on Russia and Ukraine for more than half of their wheat imports, including some of the poorest.Russia and Ukraine together account for nearly a third of the global wheat supply…

19 May 2022

Opening Ukraine's Black Sea Ports Would Need Review of Sanctions on Russia, Moscow Says

Credit: bergamont/AdobeStock

Moscow said on Thursday that sanctions on Russia would have to be reviewed if it were to heed a U.N. appeal to open access to Ukraine's Black Sea ports so that grain could be exported, according to an Interfax news agency report. Read full storyUkraine, one of the world's biggest grain producers, used to export most of its goods through its seaports, but since Russia sent troops into Ukraine, it has been forced to export by train or via its small Danube River ports.U.N. food chief David Beasley appealed on Wednesday to Russian President Vladimir Putin…

19 Apr 2022

Brazil's Parana ports face unusually busy fertilizer import season

© alphards / Adobe Stock

Ports in one of Brazil's biggest farming states are handling an unusual amount of fertilizer after importers rushed to secure supplies amid fears that sanctions on Belarus and Russia would curtail trade, the Parana port authority said.Brazilian importers are keen to secure crop nutrient supplies even if they have nowhere to store them as Brazil relies on imports for 85% of its fertilizer needs.Paranagua, one of the South American country's busiest ports, has 18 vessels awaiting to unload nearly 600…

18 Apr 2022

Ships Carrying Russian Fertilizers Find Way to Brazil Despite Sanctions

Despite concern that sanctions against Russia would cause a shortfall of fertilizer in Brazil, preliminary shipping data shows orders being fulfilled and vessels heading for Brazil, potentially allowing a normal grain planting season.At least 24 vessels carrying almost 678,000 tonnes of Russian fertilizers from ports in the country are expected to reach Brazil in the next weeks, according to preliminary shipping data compiled by Agrinvest Commodities and seen by Reuters on Monday.Despite sanctions against Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, the data show 11 of the 24 vessels left ports including Saint Petersburg and Murmansk after Feb. 24, when the war started.

14 Apr 2022

Russian Warship Sinks in the Black Sea

Satellite image ©2022 Maxar Technologies

Russia's lead warship in the Black Sea sank on Thursday, Russia's defense ministry announced, after what Ukraine said was a missile strike and Russia described as an explosion of ammunition on board.The loss of the Moskva, the flagship in Russia's Black Sea fleet, occurred as it was being towed to port in stormy weather, Russian news agencies quoted the defense ministry as saying. The sinking was a fresh blow to Moscow's military campaign as it readied for new assaults in east…

06 Apr 2022

How Much Oil Does the European Union Import from Russia?

© Igor Groshev / Adobe Stock

The European Commission has proposed new sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, including a ban on buying Russian coal and on Russian ships entering EU ports. Yet the EU faces an uphill slog to wean itself of energy imports from its Eastern neighbor.Following is a summary of key facts about the EU's use of Russian oil:How much Russian oil does the EU import?Europe is the destination for nearly half of Russia's crude and petroleum product exports, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA)…

25 Mar 2022

Ship Engine Makers Cut Ties with Russia

© Vladimir Drozdin / Adobe Stock

Finland's Wärtsilä, a leading ship engine maker, has suspended business with Russia including equipment training while German counterpart MAN Energy Solutions is reviewing contracts, adding further trade pressure on Moscow.Russia's maritime sector is already grappling with the winding down of other services including ship certification by leading foreign providers - vital for accessing ports and securing insurance - shipping companies pulling out and Western sanctions being imposed on its leading ocean transporter Sovcomflot after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.

08 Mar 2022

Yacht Linked to Russian Oligarch Leaves Barcelona

A superyacht linked to Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich left Barcelona on Tuesday where it had been undergoing repairs in a local shipyard, ship-tracking data showed.The 140-meter (460-foot) My Solaris, which sails under a Bermuda flag according to monitoring site Marine Traffic, left Spanish company MB92's Barcelona shipyard just after 5 p.m. (1600 GMT) on Tuesday, according to the same site. MB92 declined to comment.The superyacht, which was built in a German shipyard and first took to the sea early last year, is one of a string of yachts owned by Abramovich, according to reports in luxury goods publications SuperYachtFan, SuperYacht Times and Forbes.Abramovich…

07 Mar 2022

US House to Vote as Soon as Tuesday on Russia Energy Import Ban

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The U.S. House of Representatives is set to vote as soon as Tuesday on legislation seeking to ban the import of Russian energy products and suspend normal trade relations with Russia, a congressional aide told Reuters.The text of the proposal is expected later on Monday, the aide said. A group of key tax- and trade-writing lawmakers said in a joint statement that they had "agreed on a legislative path forward to ban the import of energy products from Russia."It also would give President Joe Biden the authority to increase tariffs on goods from Russia and Belarus and would require U.S.

07 Mar 2022

Wallenius Wilhelmsen Suspends Operations in Russia and Belarus

(Photo: Wallenius Wilhelmsen)

Norwegian RoRo shipping company Wallenius Wilhelmsen announced Monday it has suspended operations in Russia and Belarus indefinitely amid Russia's violent invasion of Ukraine.The company said it discontinued services into Russia and stopped taking cargo bookings on February 24, while cargo on the water heading for Russia was re-routed to alternative ports and future cargo bookings into the region have been delayed or canceled. "We have now decided to formally suspend our operations until further notice," Wallenius Wilhelmsen said."The invasion of Ukraine is a tragedy.

04 Mar 2022

Maersk Curbs Belarus Cargo Due to Ukraine Sanctions

© Fotokon / Adobe Stock

Shipping and logistics group Maersk will sharply curtail its transport of goods to Belarus to comply with sanctions over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it said on Friday."Only bookings for foodstuff, medicines and humanitarian supplies (except dual use) will be accepted after extensive screening," Maersk said in a statement.Denmark-based Maersk added that it would be unable to receive payments from or make payments to any bank that is under sanctions imposed on Russia.Belarus is a close ally of Russia and some Russian forces that entered Ukraine came from Belarusian territory for what Russia ha

01 Mar 2022

Turkey Urges Respect for Black Sea Straits Pact After Closing Access

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Turkey is calling on all sides in the Ukraine crisis to respect an international pact on passage through the Turkish straits to the Black Sea, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar was cited as saying on Tuesday after Ankara closed access.NATO ally Turkey borders Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has good ties with both. Under the 1936 Montreux Convention, Ankara has the right to limit transit through its Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits during wartime.This allows it to curb Russian warships going to the Black Sea.

01 Mar 2022

Invoking Montreux Convention, Turkey Closes Access to the Black Sea

Copyright pavalena/AdobeStock

Turkey is calling on all sides in the Ukraine crisis to respect an international pact on passage through the Turkish straits to the Black Sea, Defence Minister Hulusi Akar was cited as saying on Tuesday after Ankara closed access.NATO ally Turkey borders Ukraine and Russia in the Black Sea and has good ties with both. Under the 1936 Montreux Convention, Ankara has the right to limit transit through its straits during wartime.This allows it to curb Russian warships going to the Black Sea.

21 Feb 2022

Greece Reports First Fatality after Blaze on Ferry, 10 Still Missing

©Hellenic Coastguard

Firefighters battling for a third day a blaze on a ferry sailing from Greece to Italy recovered on Sunday the body of a passenger listed as missing, Greek authorities said.It is the first reported fatality after rescuers managed to take at least 281 out of 292 passengers and crew to safety from a blaze which broke out on the Italian-flagged Euroferry Olympia early on Friday.The ferry had been on its way to the Italian port of Brindisi from Igoumenitsa in Greece when it was engulfed…

18 Feb 2022

Lukashenko Expects Russia to Build a Port for Belarus Potash Exports

© olmax1975 / Adobe Stock

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko expects Russia to build a new Baltic Sea port for exports of Belarusian potash which were hit by Western sanctions, he said on Friday after he met Russian President Vladimir Putin.The two leaders met as Russia held military exercises in Belarus as part of a buildup of troops near Ukraine that has prompted Western warnings of an imminent Russian invasion. Moscow denies any such plan and says such warnings are dangerous.Belarus' state-owned Belaruskali is the world's second largest producer of the crop nutrient potash.

02 Mar 2022

Putin: Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Would Strengthen Europe's Energy Security

The President of Russia Vladimir Putin held talks with Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany Olaf Scholz in the Kremlin. ©Kremlin.ru

Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated on Tuesday after meeting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz that the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which is still awaiting regulatory approval, is a "purely commercial" project which will strengthen Europe's energy security.The $11-billion pipeline, which has faced stiff opposition from the United States and some European states, was built last September across the Baltic Sea from Russia to Germany, but has been idle pending German and EU regulatory clearance."This is one of Europe's largest infrastructure projects…

10 Feb 2022

Russian Naval Drills Obstruct Black Sea Shipping

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Ukraine criticized Russian naval exercises near its southern coast on Thursday, saying the presence of warships were part of a "hybrid war" that had made navigation in the Black Sea and Azov Sea virtually impossible.In a statement by the foreign ministry, Ukraine said Russia's actions "show blatant disregard for the rules and principles of international law" and that Kyiv would work together with partner countries to prepare a response."Such aggressive actions by the Russian Federation as part of its hybrid war against Ukraine are unacceptable," the statement said.