Maritime Trade in the Black Sea in the Context of the Russo-Ukrainian War
On January 27th, PMC Research Center presented the results and held a public discussion on its “Maritime Trade in the Black Sea in the Context of the Russo-Ukrainian War” study.
The study was carried out with the support of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) and aimed to assess the state and needs of maritime trade in the Black Sea amid the Russo-Ukrainian war and to produce respective policy recommendations.
The presentation and discussion touched upon the key directions needed to tackle challenges in the Black Sea region, such as mitigating the immediate consequences of the Russo-Ukrainian War, addressing fundamental infrastructure challenges and overcoming institutional and cooperation issues as well.
The findings were presented by Nika Kapanadze, a researcher at PMC RC, and Iryna Kosse, a researcher at the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting (IER) Ukraine and an affiliated researcher at PMC RC.
The presentation was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Kosse with the participation of Rati Devadze from the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia (MOESD), Zviad Chumburidze from the EU-Georgia Business Council (EUGBC), Iain Rawlinson from APM Terminals, and Irakli Sirbiladze from PMC RC as panelists.
“The discussion showed that maritime trade in the Black Sea highly depends on the security of navigation. Thus, Ukraine must win the war. Furthermore, the Middle Corridor has gained importance as an alternative route from Europe to Asia, and the Black Sea countries should seize this opportunity and be proactive in their investment projects,”
said Kosse.
“Amid the war, the Black Sea region has come under a new spotlight as a potential alternative transportation route, which allows for the circumventing of Russia. Accordingly, it has become critical to identify the current situations and needs at the ports in the Black Sea amid the Russo-Ukrainian war, and to promote the development of Black Sea ports and cooperation between Black Sea states other than Russia. With this aim, our research tried to assess the needs of the Black Sea ports and prepare recommendations for the relevant stakeholders,”
said Kapanadze.
