Ukraine calls on Germany to find a way to force Russia to release sailors
Kiev plans to ask Berlin to impose new sanctions against Russia if Moscow does not comply with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea's ruling on the release of Ukrainian sailors.
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| Ukrainian naval ship captured by Russia. Photo: Sputnik |
Ukraine's ambassador to Germany Andrei Melnik called the Hamburg court's decision a "diplomatic victory" and an important trump card in the sailors' release.
He added that he had called on Foreign Minister Heiko Maas to seek to force Russia to implement the court's ruling.
On May 25, the Permanent Court of Arbitration established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea satisfied Ukraine's request for provisional measures that Russia should take.
Specifically, the court ordered Russia to immediately release the detained sailors and allow them to return to Ukraine. According to the court’s decision, Russia is obliged to implement the above decision by June 25, 2019.
The Russian Foreign Ministry noted that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea does not apply in the current situation. Moscow will continue to defend its position.
