Russia Plans to Ban Ships Visiting Ukrainian Ports From Its Black Sea Terminals

Russia is preparing to formalize a ban on cargo vessels that have previously visited Ukrainian, Romanian, or Bulgarian ports from entering Russian territorial waters. 

According to an internal document from the Tuapse Bulker Terminal, the Russian Ministry of Transport is expected to issue a regulatory document within the coming weeks to codify these restrictions.

The memo, which is at the disposal of Latifundist, a Ukrainian agribusiness news website, is being circulated among shipowners and fleet operators.

It details a meeting at the RN-Marine Terminal Tuapse involving representatives from the FSB, customs, Ministry of Defense, and port administrations, where Rear Adm. Viktor Kochemazov stated that a directive will be prepared to regulate the ban on entering Russian waters for specific cargo vessels.

“The shipowner said directly: if I enter Ukraine now, I will be out of the Russian market for six months,” Kostiantyn Sobol, founder of Marelis Navigation S.A., told Latifundist.com. Freight broker Ivan Mashchenko confirmed the impact: “If a ship has Ukraine in its recent calls, they simply do not accept it.”

Beyond port calls, the criteria for restrictions include changes in ownership, flag, or homeport within the last 10 voyages. The memo also lists the presence of Ukrainian or Azerbaijani crew members as a risk factor. Russian officials justified these measures by citing “potential [bombing] zones” near certain berths.

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These administrative restrictions follow a series of kinetic attacks, including Russian strikes on Jan. 9, that targeted two cargo vessels near Odesa and Chornomorsk, resulting in the death of a Syrian crew member. Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of targeting civilian objects and food logistics, including previous strikes on Turkish-owned vessels in Dec 2025.

This escalation aligns with earlier Kremlin threats to cut Ukraine off from the sea in retaliation for drone strikes on Russia’s shadow fleet – the tankers Moscow uses to circumvent oil sanctions – which the Kremlin has characterized as piracy.