UN to help assess damages from Russian tanker accident in Black Sea
29.01.2025 - 17:11
The UN program is ready to provide Ukraine with technical assistance in assessing the damage from the accident in the Kerch Strait.
We are talking about the UN Environment Program (UNEP), the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine reports.
The Ministry of Environment has received a response from UNEP to the appeal of Minister Svitlana Grinchuk regarding the accident in the Kerch Strait.
“On the eve of the UN Conference on Oceans, UNEP is ready to provide Ukraine with technical assistance in assessing the damage caused to the Black Sea ecosystem by this disaster. This will be an important step in overcoming the consequences of the accident,” the ministry noted.
UNEP emphasizes that this work should be carried out in close cooperation with the Commission for the Protection of the Black Sea from Pollution, which has the appropriate mandate.
In addition, the UNEP Secretariat is ready to cooperate with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to strengthen international control over compliance with environmental standards by seagoing vessels.
As a reminder, on December 15, two Russian tankers were sinking in the Kerch Strait. The first to crash was the Volgoneft-212 tanker, which was carrying 4 tons of oil. An hour later, the Volgoneft-239 was hit by a storm.
The cause of the crash was a strong storm. One of the tankers was cut almost in half by the waves. As a result of the crashes, 4,300 tons of fuel oil and other petroleum products spilled into the sea.
As it turned out later, the fuel oil that spilled into the Black Sea as a result of the Russian tanker crash was intended for the Firn, a ship of the “shadow fleet.”
