German customs officials in Rostock, a port city, have held a cargo vessel carrying Russian uranium and lumber worth 40 million euros ($43 million), as reported by Ostsee Zeitung on April 2.
The ship, known as Atlantic Navigator II, flagged under the Marshall Islands with a predominantly Russian crew, was halted due to propeller damage and ran into issues with German customs over its sanctioned cargo.
Despite the U.S. being the intended destination for the cargo and its heavy reliance on imported uranium, the U.S. has yet to impose sanctions on Russian uranium or lumber.
However, a bill banning Russian uranium imports was passed by Congress in December 2023.
The captain of the ship is currently under investigation by Rostock’s prosecutor’s office for potentially breaching sanctions. The future of the ship and whether its cargo will be permitted to proceed remains uncertain.
The Marshall Islands, a small nation in the Pacific, are frequently used by Russian cargo ships as a base, possibly to evade sanctions.
Germany has pledged to supply Ukraine with 180,000 artillery shells, participating in a Czech Republic-led initiative to procure ammunition for Ukraine, at a cost of 576 million euros ($618 million), as announced by the German defense ministry.
This support comes as Ukraine faces a critical shortage of artillery ammunition amidst ongoing heavy combat and entrenched positions along a 1,000-km (620-mile) battlefront, two years following Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Additionally, last month, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius unveiled an aid package worth 478 million euros for Ukraine, separate from the Czech ammunition project.
Combining these efforts, the total German financial aid to Ukraine exceeds one billion euros, as confirmed by a ministry spokesperson to Reuters.
