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Italian ship owner enlisted help of government to stop piracy by Russia

The Italian shipowner Fratelli Cosulich has enlisted the help of Italy's government in an attempt to stop Russian officials from seizing the 'Tzarevna', one of several foreign-flagged merchant vessels at Mariupol that are vulnerable to potential seizure by Russian forces, which may use the ships to abscond with cargoes of steel. Russian state-controlled media has confirmed that extraction of Ukrainian metal cargo for shipment to Russian ports is currently under way. Someone presented himself to the local agent of the 'Tzarevna' in the name of the Donetsk Republic and would make an offer to buy the ship, but at a ridiculous value. They made a blackmail, an offer that could not even be taken into consideration. The 'Tsarevna' is laden with 15,000 tons of steel slabs for export to Italy. The cargo was produced by Metinvest's massive Azovstal plant, which was destroyed during the Russian siege of the city. The fate of the vessel and her cargo are unclear, but the news is that the Russians are taking everything, ship and cargo. The Pro-Russian separatist leader Denis Pushilin appeared to confirm this impression in comments on June 1. "Part of the [local] courts will pass into the jurisdiction of the [Russian-controlled] DPR. Appropriate decisions have already been made on this. These ships will be renamed. The flags that will be on them are also already clear.” The governor of the Liguria region, Giovanni Toti, has expressed his support for Cosulich and has reached out to Italian foreign minister Luigi Di Maio for support. "What is happening with the ship owned by a company of the Fratelli Cosulich Group, based in Genoa, is inadmissible and serious. [Di Maio] has already assured us of the full commitment of the [foreign ministry] to avoid this significant damage to our country and to one of the main Italian shipping groups." Like half a dozen other merchant ships stuck at Ukrainian ports, the 'Tsarevna' was struck by an explosive projectile in the early days of the Russian war against the Ukraine. There was shrapnel damage to her deckhouse and isolated damage to her hull.

Protests against Russian plans to nationalize bulk carrier caught in Mariupol

Russia wants to nationalize the 'Tzarevna' which has been caught in the port of Mariupol since Feb 24, the beginning of the war against the Ukraine. The so-called Republic of Donetsk wants to take over the ship and the cargo, Augusto Cosulich, managing director of the Fratelli Cosulich group that controls the Vulcania shipping company, which owns this ship, announced. As the ship flies the Maltese flag, he as the Consul of Malta in Italy has already moved to initiate a formal diplomatic protest. From an insurance point of view, the ship and the cargo did not have specific coverage on war risks. The ship has a market value of about 8-9 million dollars while the load of slabs is worth 12 million dollars. The president of the Liguria Region, Giovanni Toti, also intervened on the matter, saying that what is happening with the ship is inadmissible and serious. As president of the Liguria Region, he expressed all his solidarity to the Genoese shipowner and also assured his commitment to the government. He was also in contact with the Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio, who has already assured to do everything to avoid significant damage to his country and to one of the main Italian shipping groups.