“New sanctions against Russia have little impact on the port of Zeebrugge”

The new sanctions against Russia will mainly have an impact on the port of Ghent in Belgium. According to the minister, the ports of Zeebrugge and Antwerp will experience a lesser impact from the sanctions.

Russian gas in Zeebrugge

The port of Ghent is mainly affected by the coal traffic. “Eight percent of the ships in the port of Ghent come from Russia and this mainly concerns coal. That will be banned by the European Commission,” says Van Quickenborne.

The minister expects little impact for the port of Zeebrugge. “Russian gas is mainly imported there and that will not be put on the sanction list for the time being.” The ban is monitored by the Maritime Information Crossroads (MIK), the central control room of the shipping police, customs and Defence. There, the 6,000 Russian ships on all seas are monitored. Some 156 ships are also on the European sanctions list. Those ships are closely monitored.