ISTANBUL: The first vessel to use Black Sea Corridor passed through Turkey’s Bosphorus Strait on Friday.
The Hong Kong-flagged container ship Joseph Schulte, which left the Russian-blockaded Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odesa earlier this week, had been in port since February 23, 2022, the day before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine started.
Ukraine last week announced a “humanitarian corridor” in the Black Sea to free cargo ships stuck in its ports after the end of a major grain export deal last month.
Moscow has not stated whether it will respect the shipping corridor or not and security concerns exist.
Ukraine authorities have stated that the passage would be used to evacuate ships stuck in Ukrainian ports. Local broadcasters said the ship would dock at Ambarli port in southern Istanbul.
