By Polina Ivanova BERDYANSK, Ukraine, Dec 5 (Reuters) - When the Island Bay cargo ship arrived from Beirut at the Kerch Strait, gateway to the Azov Sea, it sailed into a perfect storm of geopolitics and bad weather. The following day, Russia opened fire on three Ukrainian naval ships, impounded them and detained their sailors, some of them wounded. It then blocked the … [Read more...]
Ukraine Resumes Grain Shipments from Sea of Azov
KIEV, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Ukraine said on Tuesday it had resumed grain shipments from the Azov Sea, blocked for around 10 days after a military standoff with Russia in the Kerch Strait off Crimea. Russia seized three Ukrainian naval ships and their crews on Nov. 25 after opening fire on them, accusing them of illegally entering its territorial waters. Ukraine denied its ships … [Read more...]
U.S. Slams Russia’s Yamal LNG Transfers in Norwegian Waters
By Lefteris Karagiannopoulos OSLO, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Allowing ship-to-ship transfers in Norwegian waters from Yamal in Arctic Russia, one of the world's largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, undercuts Europe's energy diversification efforts, the U.S. State Department said on Friday. By transferring LNG to more conventional tankers in Norway, the Arctic vessels cut … [Read more...]
Ukrainian Leader Says Putin Wants His Whole Country, Asks for NATO Help
By Thomas Escritt and Andrew Osborn BERLIN/MOSCOW, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko accused Russia's Vladimir Putin on Thursday of wanting to annex his entire country and called for NATO to deploy warships to a sea shared by the two nations. Poroshenko's comments to German media were part of a concerted push by Kiev to gain Western support for more … [Read more...]
LNG Carrier ‘Grand Elena’ Holed After Bumping Dock in Russia
An LNG carrier laden with 145 cubic meters of gas struck a dock at the Sakhalin Energy project on the far eastern end of Russia on Tuesday, causing damage but no gas leaks or injuries. The departure of the tanker, Grand Elena, has been delayed. A spokesperson for the project said the vessel struck a loading dock at the terminal after loading LNG bound for Japan. Media … [Read more...]