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29 February 2024

In 2023, MBLS provided legal advice to one of the world's largest specialized auctions for the sale of seized maritime assets (merchant vessels and yachts) regarding the procedure for obtaining the rights to sell the yacht Royal Romance, which is owned by an off-shore company of the family of former People's Deputy of Ukraine Viktor Medvedchuk, accused of treason in favour of russia. The Royal Romance yacht, built in 2015, 92 meters long, worth 200 million euros, is one of the most expensive in the world.

Royal Romance, registered in the Malaysian Yacht Registry (formerly the Cayman Islands), is currently under arrest in the Croatian port of Trogir and is to be handed over to a person legal entity selected on competitive basis by the National Agency of Ukraine for the Identification, Tracing and Management of Assets Derived from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA), for the arranging of the sale of a yacht on electronic bidding, according to the decision of the Croatian and Ukrainian courts.

On November 4, 2022, the IX international arbitration readings in memory of an academic Pobirchenko took place at the International Commercial Arbitration Court in the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine in Kyiv.

The key issue for discussion was Ukraine's sanctions policy, in particular the specifics of the application of sanctions against individuals and companies of the Russian Federation and their impact on business interests.

The discussion was attended by: Andrii Yarmolskyi - head of department of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Kostyantyn Pilkov, judge of the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court of Ukraine, Mykola Selivon, head of the ICAC and MAC at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Ukraine, lawyers of leading law firms of Ukraine, lawyers and managers of Ukrainian companies , others.

The MBLS provided advice to participants of the “ARMA” (National Agency of Ukraine for the Detection, Searching and Management of Assets obtained by Corruption and Other Crimes) tender, which expressed a desire to obtain tankers owned by Russian shipowners and arrested by Ukrainian courts in criminal cases against Russia, commenced in connection with the military invasion of Ukraine.

In particular, the consultations provided included advices on: the procedure for registration of vessels in the ship register of Ukraine to give them the right to sail under the flag of Ukraine; the procedure for obtaining ship documents for sailing between Ukrainian and foreign ports; the possibility of registering ships under a foreign flag, ship documents and the procedure for obtaining them in this case; the procedure for obtaining a license for commercial shipping, in particular for the transport of dangerous cargo such as oil and oil products by sea.

Note - The National Agency of Ukraine for Detection, Searching and Management of Assets Obtained from Corruption and Other Crimes manages assets seized in criminal proceedings, including as a measure to secure a lawsuit filed in the interests of the state, with the establishment of prohibitions on the disposal and / or use of such assets. These assets are taken into the management on the basis of the decision of the investigating judge.

From August 31 to September 2, 2021, the traditional exhibition Trans Expo Odessa was held in the building of the Odessa Sea Terminal, which provided space for companies of the maritime industry: such as carriers; forwarders; other related organizations to present their products and services.

Within the framework of the exhibition, an international conference was held: “Development of the transport system of Ukraine: challenges and prospects. Ports and Multimodal Transportation”. The conference participants discussed the transport strategy of Ukraine - 2030.

On August 13, 2021, an online meeting “8 new markets. Business opportunities” 

The meeting was attended by: Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Agriculture - Taras Kachka; President of the Exporters' Club of Ukraine Yevhen Lytvynov; Vitaliy Boyko - Malaysia's sales representative in Ukraine; Emma Turos - Executive Director of the Canada-Ukraine Chamber of Commerce and Industry; heads of the Foreign Trade Bureau in Kyiv and JSC Polish Agency for Investment and Trade; President of the Swedish Business Association in Ukraine; Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Sao Paulo, Vice President of the Brazilian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry; representatives of the Confederation of Indian Industry; Australian-Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and others.

Andrey Mashchenko posted his article on shiparrested.com dedicated to the rules for arresting ships in Ukraine for practical use.
 
The article can be found by following the link: Ship arrest in Ukraine: Relevant Procedure in Brief for Practical Usage.
 
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