According to the head of the Institute for Black Sea Strategic Studies, Andrii Klymenko, the russian army uses civilian vessels for military purposes.
“When the Kerch Strait Bridge started functioning in May 2018, maritime communication became irrelevant for the russian Federation. Everything they needed was transported by road, and then when the railway part of the bridge started operating, it was transported by rail. The ports of Crimea practically ceased to be used for maritime transport, with a few interesting exceptions. Firstly, there was the grain fleet, which involved exporting stolen Ukrainian grain mainly to Syria. The second component was the transportation of military cargoes from Crimean ports to the russian military contingent in Syria,” Andrii Klymenko explained.
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He revealed that the infamous Sig merchant tanker, which was damaged a few days ago near the Kerch Strait, was carrying oil products and fuel for the russian Navy’s squadron based in the Syrian port.
“Formally, these are civilian vessels transporting military cargoes. One component of the Syrian traffic consists of auxiliary vessels of the russian Black Sea Fleet, and the other involves formally civilian vessels registered under civilian companies, which transported military equipment and weaponry to Syria. In essence, this was the utilization of civilian vessels for military purposes,” the expert said.
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