On 1 May 2019 at the International Maritime Organization (IMO) the delegation of Ukraine called upon Member States not to recognize the Russian Federation’s claim to implement the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), 1978 on the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine.

Any documents – whether certificates of competency or seafarers’ identity documents – issued after 15 July 2014 by the so-called “harbour masters” of the seaports in the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, are null and void, have no legal effect and, by their very nature, should be considered unlawful.

The representative of Ukraine reiterated his call on Russia to release the 24 Ukrainian servicemen, who were detained on 25 November 2018 whilst lawfully attempting to sail through the Kerch Strait.