Crimean ports have essentially become unneeded in isolation from mainland Ukraine. Therefore, the Transport Ministry of the self-proclaimed republic plans to develop them exclusively for meeting the peninsula’s domestic needs. The ministry’s head Yurii Shevchenko announced this to the ITAR TASS news agency, the LB.ua publication reports.
Shevchenko explained that the development of the ports as export-import ports is hampered by logistical constraints. "Even if we bring 90-100 million tons of cargo to the Crimea per year, we cannot take all these cargoes to the Russian Federation on a bridge,” said Shevchenko.
Currently, transshipment of cargoes from the peninsula is almost non-existent because the ports transshipped mostly Ukrainian cargo, and freight traffic from Ukraine has essentially stopped.
Therefore, development of port facilities primarily involves maintaining them in acceptable condition. "If the political situation changes tomorrow and relations with Ukraine are resolved, then the ports can be developed," said Shevchenko.
As reported, the Crimean authorities plan to eliminate the ports in Feodosia and Yevpatoria. In addition to these two cities, ports in the Crimea are also located in Sevastopol, Yalta, and Kerch.
