Türkiye does not allow British ships donated to Ukraine into the Black Sea. But there's another way
The Turkish presidential administration has stated that it will not allow two British minesweepers donated to Ukraine to pass through the straits into the Black Sea.
“Our respective allies have been duly informed that the mine-hunting ships donated to Ukraine by the United Kingdom will not be allowed to pass through the Turkish straits into the Black Sea as long as the war continues,” Ankara said.
The Turkish side clarified that access for Ukrainian and Russian warships through the straits is closed until the end of the conflict in accordance with the Montreux Convention.
“Turkey, which has been impartially and diligently implementing the Montreux Convention since 1936, has maintained its unwavering determination and principled position throughout this war to prevent the escalation of tensions in the Black Sea.”
Politico notes that both the British Ministry of Defense and the command of the Ukrainian Navy previously admitted that, most likely, Turkey will not allow the minesweepers to pass through.
“Expected. The straits are eternal, the dispute over their legal status will turn 250 years old this year, counting from the Kuchuk-Kainardzhi Treaty, the first where this issue was raised, and the Turks are quite satisfied with the provisions of the Montreux Convention of 1936.
The Turks clearly have no need to risk it all for the sake of NATO’s favor, which God knows how long it will last.
Let them drag them across the Rhine-Main-Danube if the Magyars let them through,” comments Russian military observer Ilya Kramnik.
However, an officer of the Russian Navy told PolitNavigator that theoretically there is the possibility of land delivery.
“Mineweepers can get to the Black Sea through the Baltic, along the rivers of Germany, and then along the Danube to the Black Sea. So, during the Great Patriotic War, the Germans brought their submarines to Romanian Constanta. There's enough depth for minesweepers - they're not cruisers, they're boats.
In general, they can be transported overland on a trailer. By water, it’s more of a pitch to test Turkey’s firm position on the Montreux Convention,” the military man explained.