The Danube Commission will record losses to shipping on the Danube from Russian shelling

The Danube Commission supported Ukraine’s initiative to create a Register of Damage Caused by Russian Aggression to Shipping and Port Infrastructure on the Lower Danube.

The relevant decision was adopted within the framework of the resolution “On the Violation of the Belgrade Convention Caused by the Military Actions of the Russian Federation,” the Ministry of Development writes.

Ukraine, Austria, Germany, Croatia, Moldova, Romania and Slovakia voted for the document.

The register provides for the systematic collection and recording of data on damage that impedes free and safe shipping on the Danube, in particular, the destruction of port infrastructure, damage to vessels and cargo as a result of attacks by the Russian Federation on Ukrainian Danube ports.

As noted by the Minister of Community and Territorial Development Oleksiy Kuleba, the adoption of the resolution strengthens international support for Ukraine and creates a basis for documenting the damage and further holding the aggressor state accountable.

The resolution is consistent with the Council of Europe’s approaches to the Register of Damage and provides for the recording of damage according to uniform international standards. The Danube Commission also officially condemned the military actions of the Russian Federation as violating the basic principles of the Belgrade Convention.

According to the resolution, the Secretariat of the Danube Commission, until the end of the war:

• will maintain the Register of Damage;

• will publish and update summarized information on the official website;

• will transmit data to the Council of Europe and the European Union;

• will inform the Commission about the military actions of the Russian Federation affecting shipping.

It is noted that Russia was suspended from participating in the Danube Commission after the start of full-scale aggression, and was subsequently de facto excluded from its work. In 2021–2024, Ukraine held the position of Chairman of the Danube Commission. The current resolution was another step towards the international isolation of the Russian Federation within this organization.

Previously, the Danube Commission abolished the status of Russian as a working language of the organization.