During the oral hearings at the Arbitration Tribunal in The Hague in the case regarding the rights of Ukraine in the Black and Azov Seas and the Kerch Strait, Anton Korynevych, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, emphasized the need to bring the Russian Federation to justice.
Points of attention
- Ukraine demands that Russia be held accountable for violations of maritime law in the Black and Azov seas.
- Russia illegally claims the internal waters of the Sea of Azov, violating the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
- Ukraine considers the Kerch bridge illegal and demands its dismantling due to obstacles to shipping and Russia's military goals.
- Ukraine calls on the tribunal to apply the Convention on the Law of the Sea and hold Russia accountable for violating Ukraine's rights.
Russia has no right to rewrite maritime law
Anton Korynevich, Ambassador-at-Large of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, emphasized that Ukraine in this case proves numerous violations of international maritime law by Russia, stressing that "Russia has no right to rewrite maritime law."
He drew attention to the fact that Russia claims that the entire Sea of Azov with an area of 37,600 square kilometers is its internal waters and is not covered by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Ukraine insists that the tribunal should not make a decision that would contradict the provisions of UNCLOS and recognize the Sea of Azov as internal waters of several states.
Such a decision will undermine the rights of Ukraine, as well as other countries whose ships have traditionally transported millions of tons of grain, steel and other goods to and from Mariupol and Berdyansk, Korynevich said.
He also called the Kerch bridge illegal and declared the need to dismantle it.
The Russian Federation illegally built a permanent obstacle to passage through this vital sea route (the Kerch Strait — ed.) — an extremely low bridge. A bridge that is lower than indicated in the results of Russian studies; lower than Russia's own commercial interests require; and lower than any other bridge built today or even proposed to be built over the international strait, Korinevych said.
The ambassador emphasized that some of the main classes of vessels used in international trade can no longer pass through the strait through the Crimean Bridge.
These ships transported Ukrainian steel, grain and other food products to the rest of the world. Today, this bridge not only obstructs the transit passage, but is also used by Russia for the constant transfer of weapons to the territory of the Crimean Peninsula, Korynevich noted.
Ukraine calls on the tribunal to apply the Convention on the Law of the Sea in its current version.
Use the mandatory jurisdiction granted to you by UNCLOS and hold Russia accountable for violating the law of the sea in this particular case of its illegal actions, the Ukrainian representative said.
What preceded it
Ukraine began arbitration proceedings against Russia in September 2016, seeking to protect its rights as a littoral state in the waters adjacent to Crimea in the Black Sea, the Sea of Azov and the Kerch Strait.
In August 2018, the court in The Hague agreed to consider Russia's objections, temporarily postponing the merits of the case.
Russia's main argument was that Ukraine's claims do not relate to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, but are an attempt to obtain a decision that would confirm Ukraine's sovereignty over Crimea.
