IMO Condemns Attacks on Merchant Ships in Black Sea, Azov

IMO Speaks Out Against Attacks on Civilian Shipping

According to a statement carried by Maritime Executive, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez issued a strong condemnation on August 26 of a string of attacks against civilian merchant vessels operating in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea over the preceding week. The statement was released as the IMO Council was reviewing ongoing threats to international shipping and the need to safeguard freedom of navigation.

Dominguez noted that while much of the world’s attention has recently been fixed on tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, seafarers elsewhere continue to face serious danger. He stressed that the organization condemns any unwarranted attack on civilian merchant ships tied to geopolitical conflict, regardless of where it takes place, warning that such incidents put crews at risk, jeopardize navigational safety, disrupt supply chains, and erode the legal foundations that international shipping relies on.

A Call for Restraint and Protection of Seafarers

In his statement, the IMO chief appealed to all parties involved in regional conflicts to avoid actions that threaten innocent merchant shipping or damage the marine environment. He urged adherence to international law and reiterated that crews should never be treated as casualties of disputes they have no part in. “Every seafarer, wherever they serve, deserves to work in safety and security,” he said.

The statement did not specify vessel names, flag states, or the parties responsible for the attacks, and no further operational detail was included in the release.

What This Means for Owners and Operators

For ship owners, managers, and charterers with any exposure to the Black Sea or Sea of Azov trades, this statement is another reminder that the region remains a persistent risk zone even as headlines shift toward other flashpoints such as the Strait of Hormuz. Repeated attacks on civilian shipping, regardless of scale, tend to affect insurance terms, war-risk premiums, and route planning long before any formal resolution is reached at the political level.

From an inspection and survey standpoint, elevated risk in a trading region typically translates into heightened due diligence requirements before, during, and after voyages through affected waters. Pre-purchase and condition surveys become more important for vessels that have recently operated in or near contested zones, since war-risk exposure can affect hull condition assessments, insurance claims, and resale value. Bunker and cargo documentation also carries added weight when a vessel’s voyage history includes passage through a region under active geopolitical strain, as counterparties and insurers may scrutinize records more closely.

The IMO’s statement itself carries no enforcement mechanism — it is a diplomatic appeal rather than a binding directive — but it does signal that the organization is treating the Black Sea and Sea of Azov situation as an ongoing concern rather than a resolved one. Operators should not assume that reduced media coverage of a region equates to reduced operational risk.

Broader Context

The statement arrives amid a wider pattern of geopolitical disruption to shipping highlighted elsewhere in recent reporting, including seizures of vessels tied to sanctions disputes and continued scrutiny of so-called shadow fleet tankers operating under opaque ownership and flag arrangements. Taken together, these developments underscore how commercial shipping increasingly finds itself caught between conflicting state interests, with seafarers bearing the immediate risk.

For now, the IMO’s message is one of appeal rather than enforcement: a call for all parties to respect international law and keep merchant crews out of the line of fire. Whether that appeal translates into reduced attacks on the water remains to be seen, and operators transiting the affected waters would do well to maintain heightened vigilance, robust documentation, and up-to-date vessel condition records in the meantime.

Reviewed by Ibrahim Halil Ceylan, Marine Surveyor at Apeks Marine.