UK Ambassador Gareth Ward was “invited to a meeting” at the Georgian Foreign Ministry on June 17 over the British Embassy’s brief note from previous day that the new sanctions against Russia also targeted the vessel which “accessed a Georgian port earlier this year.”
According to the Foreign Ministry, Ward met with the Georgian Dream Deputy Foreign Minister George Zurabashvili. Their talks focused on Georgia’s “compliance with international sanctions regimes” and the “efforts” undertaken by the Georgian government and relevant state authorities in this regard, the ministry stated.
“It was underscored that the persistent speculations surrounding the issue remains unclear, particularly in light of the fact that there has not been a single instance of Georgia violating international sanctions, and with Georgian authorities maintaining thorough cooperation with the international partners,” it added.
“In this regard, it is concerning that the statement issued by the British Embassy places particular emphasis on Georgia in connection with the sanctioned vessel “SILVAR” (IMO 9291262), which reinforces misleading perceptions and serves to deliberately undermine Georgia’s interests.”
Zurabashvili stressed that the British Embassy’s reference to the vessel’s link to Georgia was “unacceptable,” the ministry said, “particularly given that, at the time of the vessel’s entry into Georgia and throughout its operations, no international sanctions had been imposed on it.”
“Moreover, the vessel held a valid class issued by Lloyd’s Register (United Kingdom), had been operating on numerous international maritime trade routes, visiting European, Asian, and African ports, including Malta, Denmark (Skagen), Egypt, Malaysia, India, China, and others,” the ministry added, insisting that “all the competent authorities of Georgia have been acting in full compliance with the national and international obligations.”
The ministry further said that the British side is “well-informed that, just a few weeks prior to entering Georgia, the sessel had undergone a Port State Control inspection in the Kingdom of Denmark and it has not been detained on that ground, hence confirming its compliance with international maritime safety and technical requirements.”
Reiterating that the British Embassy’s statement was “unacceptable,” the Foreign Ministry statement said, “Such manipulative narrativges undermine the relations between Georgia and the United Kingdom,” adding, “At the conclusion of the meeting, special emphasis was placed on the importance of constructive cooperation between the parties.”
The summoning followed a June 16 late evening statement by the Maritime Transport Agency of Georgia, which said it was “unclear” why Georgia was referenced by the British Embassy, noting, like the Foreign Ministry, that at the time the vessel entered a Georgian port, it was “not subject to sanctions imposed by the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United States, or the United Nations.”
However, the vessel Silvar, which has been part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” network, had reportedly been sanctioned by Ukraine by the time it entered Georgia. The vessel reportedly entered Kulevi port in Georgia in late January, with investigative journalists at iFact estimating that it unloaded “up to 24,000 tons of oil or petroleum products” between February 2 and 6 before departing for Istanbul.
The Kulevi oil refinery, operated by Georgian company Black Sea Petroleum, has been under scrutiny in recent months over its alleged role in facilitating Russian oil exports. The controversy also extended to Kulevi port, which, on the other hand, is owned and operated by Azerbaijan’s SOCAR.
The port was initially considered for inclusion in the European Union’s 20th sanctions package against Russia. The EU ultimately decided not to include the port in the package, citing “positive commitments” by Georgian authorities and the terminal’s operator, SOCAR.
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