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Russia could target civilian shipping in the Black Sea by using sea mines — including by laying them on approaches to Ukrainian ports, the UK government has warned.
Citing declassified intelligence, it said there was a risk of attack to cargo ships with Ukrainian exports passing through a “humanitarian corridor” recently set up by Kyiv.
“Russia almost certainly wants to avoid openly sinking civilian ships, instead falsely laying blame on Ukraine for any attacks against civilian vessels in the Black Sea,” Britain’s Foreign Office said in a statement.
“By releasing our assessment of this intelligence, the UK seeks to expose Russia’s tactics to deter any such incident from occurring.”
Last month, Britain said that Moscow’s forces had targeted a civilian cargo ship in the region with “multiple missiles,” adding that they were successfully thwarted by air defenses.
“Russia’s pernicious targeting of civilian shipping in the Black Sea demonstrates [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s total disregard for civilian lives and the needs of the world’s most vulnerable,” Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said.
“The world is watching — and we see right through Russia’s cynical attempts to lay blame on Ukraine for their attacks,” he added.
In July, Moscow withdrew from a deal that had allowed Ukraine to safely ship food products out through what was traditionally its main export route in the Black Sea.
Kyiv, in response, set up a temporary “humanitarian corridor” for cargo vessels.
dvv/nm (AFP, Reuters, dpa)
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