AMEU turned to the prosecutor’s office because of the actions of the customs office in the port of Odesa

The Association of International Freight Forwarders of Ukraine appealed to the law enforcement authorities regarding the activities of the customs office in Odesa port.

Due to the cancellation of the first ship call of the world carrier MSC to the Odesa port at the end of June, AMEU turned to the prosecutor’s office.

AMEU noted that the reason for the cancellation of the ship entry was groundless cargo inspections, as well as delays in customs clearance of export containers with agricultural products for an indefinite period. Due to this, the cargo is blocked for an indefinite period and becomes more expensive due to additional costs of storage and demurrage, which can reach $2-3 thousand.

This activity of the customs office endangers the launch of a regular container service to the ports of Greater Odesa, the association said.

In a letter to the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office, AMEU asks to take measures to restore the proper operation of sea checkpoints in terms of the organization of customs clearance of goods in accordance with the requirements of the Customs Code of Ukraine.

It will be recalled that at the end of June, the container operator MSC canceled the first call to the port of Odesa due to cargo checks and delays in customs clearance.

After that, the State Customs Service stated that none of the containers were detained by customs, and the registration of all export cargoes was completed on time.

Finally, the container ship MSC “Levante F” arrived at the port of Odesa from the Georgian port of Poti. In fact, this is the first MSC container ship to arrive at a Ukrainian port since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It is currently known that the vessel will sail between Odesa and the Turkish city of Tekirdag.