In May 2026, Odesa once again became the center of a large-scale industry discussion: Ukrainian Transport Forum 2026, one of the most important annual events in transport and logistics sector of Ukraine, was held here. The event under the slogan “Sustainability. Digitalization. Development” brought together over 340 leading market players: forwarding and logistics companies, port operators and terminals, container lines, carriers, importers, exporters, as well as heads of relevant state institutions.

The forum was organized by the South Ukrainian Office of the European Business Association (EBA) in strategic partnership with the Association of International Freight Forwarders of Ukraine (AIFFU) and Interlegal law firm within the Maritime Days in Odesa platform. MTB Bank acted as the general partner and the pool of official partners included such powerful industrial companies as UVK, LION, River Complex and the Orlivka Ferry Complex. The event was held with the official support of the Ministry of Development of Communities and Territories of Ukraine and the Odesa Regional Military Administration.

Thanks to the deep and frank professional discussion that lasted throughout the event, Ukrainian Transport Forum 2026 once again confirmed its status as an authoritative platform for an open dialogue between business and government. Such meetings allow not only sharing experience and assessments, but also a common vision of development of the industry in the face of constant challenges. With each year of the war, the importance of such professional platforms only grows, because transport and logistics sustainability today is not just a matter of economic efficiency, but one of the key factors of stability, competitiveness and economic security of the state.

The forum program covered the most pressing issues of today, divided into three thematic blocks: security and infrastructure, digitalization of logistics, global trends and realities of the shipping market. The forum delegates discussed such issues as restoration and development of transport infrastructure, operation of maritime corridors, prospects and challenges of European integration, introducing digital solutions in logistics processes, as well as changes that today determine the future of international trade and shipping.

Ukrainian Transport System: Security, Infrastructure, Coordination

First panel discussion was opened with a government and regional dialogue. Oleksii Kuleba (Vice Prime Minister for the Reconstruction of Ukraine – Minister of Community and Territories Development of Ukraine) and Oleksii Khymchenko (Deputy Head of the Odesa Regional Administration) in their welcome speech emphasized critical importance of logistics for the country’s economic survival and stability. The panel was thematically dedicated to functioning of the country’s transport system under martial law, moderated by Viktor Berestenko, President of the Association of International Freight Forwarders of Ukraine. Speakers discussed the priorities of state policy in transport sector, port capacity, simplification of customs procedures, as well as security of the Ukrainian sea corridor and measures necessary for uninterrupted operation of Ukrainian strategic gateways, i.e. ports in Odesa region.

Serhii Derkach, Deputy Minister of Community and Territories Development of Ukraine, held a keynote speech on the state’s priorities at the event. He immediately noted that despite the lion’s share of the state budget being directed to military purposes, the government maintains a clear focus on restoring logistical routes. Currently, ca. 200 brigades are working on Ukrainian roads, which have already repaired 10 million square meters of road surface. However, the ministry is implementing a model of co-financing repairs 50 to 50 with local communities, which it also calls on private business to join. A huge challenge for the country remains the railway, which has suffered from over 1,200 hostile attacks on tracks and rolling stock over the past year. Currently, government officials, jointly with railway workers, are working on equipping both trains and other railway facilities with special security equipment. In parallel, strategic European integration is underway: following the Eurotrack to Uzhgorod, a Eurotrack from Lviv to the border with Poland is being built. The ministry is also developing project documentation for reconstruction of the M-15 Odesa-Reni highway, which is critically important for the southern region.

Serhii Derkach cited catastrophic figures from a World Bank report that estimated total damage to Ukrainian infrastructure at almost 600 billion USD. Since it is impossible to cover such an amount on its own or even with the assistance of international donors, the state is betting on a public-private partnership, planning to attract up to 50% of the necessary funds from private investors. The main tool here is a concession. An active procedure is already underway for the container terminal of the Chornomorsk Sea Port; this summer the ministry is planning to announce a tender for the concession of a ferry terminal, in which Ukrainian business is actively invited to participate.

For Odesa region, the government official announced several large-scale infrastructure and digital projects that will contribute, in particular, to development of Danube port logistics. The government is planning to build, inter alia, a bridge on Orlivka, which will allow opening a full-fledged new automobile route and expanding the capacity of this border. Deputy Minister also shared ambitious plans to launch a pilot project e-Queue for passenger cars through Diia, which will start in Odesa region. Principal philosophy of the ministry in 2026 is complete predictability of the rules of the game and total digitalization. One of the most anticipated solutions on the market will be complete abolition of paper freight and transport invoices and transition to mandatory e-CMR from January next year. Revolutionary changes are also waiting for the Shliakh system: it will be completely abolished as a separate platform. Instead, verification of commercial vehicle drivers will be carried out automatically in the process of registration in e-Queue, which will eliminate double bureaucracy.

Mykola Kravchuk, Head of the State Enterprise “Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority”, presented a cross-section of the port industry’s work filled with hard facts and figures. Having assessed its work for the fourth year of a full-scale war, head of the USPA called every Ukrainian port worker a hero of his/her time. Despite constant threats, six accessible Ukrainian ports in the first quarter of 2026 demonstrated a 7% increase in cargo turnover, as compared to the same period last year. In total, Ukraine exported a whopping 200 million tons of cargo through the Ukrainian grain corridor, including ca. 120 million tons of grain. Today, it is the sea gates that provide over 90% of the whole international cargo turnover in Ukraine.

However, behind such indicators there is an extremely high and tragic price. Port infrastructure remains one of the key targets of the enemy, who has significantly changed the nature of its attacks. The number of airstrikes in ports has increased by 143%, while the intensity of drone attacks has increased almost 11-fold. Since February 2022, the aggressor has damaged 930 port infrastructure facilities and 190 civilian vessels (47 of them have been damaged only in early 2026). Unfortunately, during this period, 253 people (port workers, personnel and crew members) have been injured or killed. Constant attacks put pressure on the speed of cargo processing, shipping safety, insurance costs and the overall economy of shipping business.

That is why the absolute priority of AIFFU and USPA for 2026 is total security. Head of the department noted that only since early 2026 seaport facilities have been attacked by ca. 1,200 enemy UAVs. In response to this challenge, USPA has allocated over 120 million UAH in the budget for the current year exclusively for security and defense measures. With such funds, an effective network of mobile fire groups has been formed and deployed in ports, while the most up-to-date electronic warfare equipment, specialized video surveillance systems, thermal imagers and other defense technologies are being actively purchased. Mykola Kravchuk expressed deep gratitude to the Security and Defense Forces, the Odesa Region Military Administration and the port business, emphasizing that without financial, organizational and technical assistance of the private sector, it would have been impossible to protect logistics hubs. The main result of such unique synergy between the state and business was that, despite multiple increase in attacks, the scale of real destruction and damage in the ports was significantly reduced. Ukrainian ports continue to receive vessels and operate at full capacity.

Vladyslav Suvorov, Deputy Head of the State Customs Service of Ukraine, presented a strategic plan for transforming the Ukrainian customs into a full-fledged part of the EU Customs Union. The official emphasized that in terms of the level of preparedness and progress in implementing European legislation, Ukraine has taken one of the first places among all candidate countries over the past three years. Customs service successfully passed an official screening by the European Commission, having resulted in three main benchmarks for recognizing readiness for European integration: full harmonization of legislation, digitalization of IT systems, and building administrative capacity of the institution. A key step on this path is adoption of a completely new Customs Code of Ukraine; its draft received an official positive opinion from the European Commission in January 2026. Structurally, the new document completely copies the European analogue, leaving at the national level only specific areas, as well as blocks necessary to ensure the country’s defense and security during the transition period. According to optimistic forecasts, the Supreme Council of Ukraine will adopt the code this year, and it will enter into force on January 1, 2027.

Second fundamental challenge is total digitalization of the IT infrastructure. A list of 34 key IT systems has been determined for Ukraine, which should operate until accession to the EU. As of today, only the computerized NCTS transit system has been fully tested and is successfully operating in Ukraine, technical documentation has been fully prepared for 5 more systems, and discussions are ongoing regarding development model for the rest. Third benchmark is the radical transformation of customs as an institution. In April 2026, the first important stage took place, i.e. appointment of a new head of the State Customs Service according to new transparent procedures. Next step will be the re-certification of all personnel, launch of a new KPI system, increase in employee salaries and expansion of the capabilities of operational and investigative activities of internal security units to identify corruption connections.

Vladyslav Suvorov paid special attention to qualitative reconstruction of infrastructure and interaction with business. The department is working on the concept of a smart checkpoint, i.e. a single integration platform that will combine weighing systems, scanners, video surveillance systems and automatic license plate recognition. In the framework of international cooperation, the priority is to fix instant electronic data exchange on cargo with neighboring EU countries through the SEED system. Currently, such exchange is fully operational only with Hungary. In order to simplify legal business, the customs office relies on the tools of the authorized economic operator (AEO) and the local release procedure (LCP). Following adoption of the new code, the national pre-declaration system will be completely abolished, and registration will take place exclusively through the NCTS system. Just now, Odesa region is the leader in the number of companies that have received AEO status. For such duly authorized enterprises, this year, for the first time, automatic customs clearance of declarations was introduced without any inspector involved. Vladyslav Suvorov emphasized that today 20% of all export declarations in Ukraine are processed by businesses directly at their own facilities without calling a customs officer, while the service calls on companies to become even more actively involved in this system of simplifications.

Serhii Bratchuk, commander of the volunteer formation of Odesa City Territorial Community No. 1, commander of the Odeschyna unit of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army and spokesman for the Ukrainian Volunteer Army, devoted his speech to a critically important topic for the industry, namely security of the maritime corridor of Ukraine. As a military practitioner, he immediately set the tone for discussion, noting that modern war is primarily a war of logistics, and that Ukrainian port workers and forwarders hold the true forefront of economic defense.

Having assessed the current situation in the sky over Odesa, speaker emphasized that no weapon is currently a panacea, so the defense forces are constantly modernizing. Apart from usual mobile fire groups, a completely new technological direction, namely use of interceptor drones, is actively developing and scaling up in the Southern Ukraine. Thanks to such innovation, the percentage of shooting down enemy air targets in Odesa region is constantly increasing. However, speaker frankly outlined the new threats facing shipping. Now the enemy is increasing the number of strike drones, as well as is creating new challenges directly in the maritime component, namely unmanned boats being capable of diving underwater, creating serious risks for ships and port terminals.

Commander drew special attention to the acute legislative problems that business and the defense forces have to overcome together. In particular, the relevant legislation on activities of the Voluntary Formations of Territorial Communities in fact has remained at the level of 2022, although in 2026 the challenges have become much more complex and technological. Due to imperfection of the regulatory framework, urban communities are legally deprived of the opportunity to purchase some military goods for volunteers (e.g. specialized sights for machine guns that destroy Russian drones). That is why direct, flexible and rapid assistance from the logistics business often turns out to be more effective than bureaucratic state procedures. Finally, Serhii Bratchuk called on the participants not to panic over the news about construction of new perimeter defense lines around Odesa, having highlighted that this does not indicate deterioration in the situation, but a planned and systematic improvement in defense of the city.

AI and Digital Solutions in Logistics

Second session of the forum, moderated by Dmytro Dimchoglo, co-owner of the Orlivka port, was entirely devoted to practical implementation of innovations, electronic document management and digital transformation of logistics chains. In particular, speakers presented practical cases of implementing AI agents, e-CMR system and NCTS.

Petro Babii, head of the Customs Clearance and Regulation Department of the Aurora Multimarket chain of stores, spoke about practical experience of a large-scale retailer in implementing common transit procedures and digital interaction with customs. As a large importer with scopes exceeding 3,000 cargo shipments per year, coming from 14 countries worldwide, the company urgently needed smart optimization of processes. Key decision was the launch of the common transit procedure (NCTS) at the end of 2024. Today, ca. 50% of all Aurora imports are processed using NCTS. Transition to joint transit has had a noticeable economic effect. Thanks to obtaining authorization for exemption from financial guarantee, the company no longer needs to freeze its own funds for the duration of the goods flow (from 3 to 9 days). This allowed it to release over 1 billion UAH from turnover. In addition, Aurora abandoned expensive guarantees from European companies and attracted a domestic guarantor which brought another half a million hryvnia in net savings on agent services in the EU.

Among other practical advantages of NCTS, speaker highlighted work under uniform international rules, availability of high-quality and customer-oriented helpdesk of the State Customs Service, absence of the need to submit unnecessary declarations such as EE or General Arrival Declaration, as well as flexibility unique for wartime. In particular, joint transit allows changing the final place of delivery of cargo already in transit, which is strictly prohibited in the framework of national procedures. Given that in 2027 T1 transit declarations will become mandatory for the market, Petro Babii called on businesses to gain this experience right now.

In the second part of his report, head of Aurora customs department presented a breakthrough case study of working with customs data. The company completely moved away from manual processing of each individual CMR, turning an array of XML files into a single analytical database. Now, data from over 40 tables and 400 technical tags of declarations have been updated in corporate system automatically every hour. This gave the company a single point for analytics, allowed real-time monitoring of the status of financial guarantees by customs or carriers and significantly accelerated work of accountants and financiers. Despite the obvious digital successes, speaker also frankly voiced the barriers that big business still faces at customs. Even the status of Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) does not save the company from delays, subjective assignment of additional forms of control, inconsistency of specifications and pressure in matters of determining customs value. In addition, the limited working hours of state bodies are a demotivator for business.

Petro Babii answered the question of why Aurora Multimarket currently imports Asian goods through the ports of the Baltics and Poland, and not through Greater Odesa. The only and determining deterrent factor remains security. The company is very interested in supporting Ukrainian port logistics and will return to Odesa as soon as the security situation allows. Currently, the retailer is investing in construction of a new large logistics facility, where it is planning to implement a location-based release (LCP) procedure, which, as per preliminary calculations, will bring an additional savings amounting to ca. 10 million UAH per year on terminal services alone and will speed up the arrival of goods on store shelves by at least one day.

Vasyl Rosada, head of the Vchasno.TTN project, in his report analyzed the upcoming regulatory changes and presented ready-made technological solutions for paperless freight management. Speaker emphasized that transition to electronic freight and transport invoices is an inevitable process. Currently, the relevant draft law is in the final stages of approval by the authorities. Key deadline for the market is January 1, 2027. Starting from this date paper CMRs will completely become out-of-date, while the use of e-CMR will become mandatory for all Ukrainian business entities. Vchasno team became the first state-accredited provider in this project.

The main difference between e-CMR and ordinary commercial electronic document flow is that it is a rigidly structured document that is created according to the first state specification and is synchronized with the state Central Database (CDB) every second. Instead of printing 3-5 hard copies, the business creates one digital original counterpart. Any adjustments, amendments or acts shall be automatically made to this single file and shall instantly become available to all participants in the chain. Documents cannot be forged or rewritten retroactively, they are never lost, and a tax audit for the company turns into a quick upload of the archive to a flash drive in a few minutes.

Traditionally, the biggest fear of businesses during the launch of the reform was human factor, namely the need for drivers to affix e-signature directly in the field or on the highway. Vasyl Rosada shared a unique case of overcoming this barrier. Understanding that the classic procedure for generating and downloading EDS for a driver is too complicated, Vchasno developed a revolutionary mobile application for iOS and Android. The driver only needs to be verified once through Diia or banking services (Monobank, Privat24), while the system automatically issues an internal key for him in the background. The process of signing the cargo at the warehouse or on the ramp is reduced to two clicks on the phone using Face ID, Touch ID or a four-digit password.

For successful deployment of the project in the company, speaker advised acting in accordance with a clear algorithm. First, it is necessary to describe in detail all logistics scenarios (working with own or hired transport, specification of shipments to own warehouses or to external contractors). Second, it is worth starting the implementation with the simplest closed route, where the company fully controls all links, and only then scale the system to large partners and train warehouse personnel. For companies with small document flow, Vchasno offers a convenient web office with the ability to upload your own directories and manually create invoices. If the company generates thousands of CMRs per month, the only right solution is full integration via API or ready-made modules with the corporate ERP system. With this model, logisticians do not need to learn new software; they continue to work in the familiar interface, and data exchange with CDB, driver and consignee occurs automatically.

Finally, head of Vchasno.TTN announced several breakthrough technological updates for the near future. The company will launch a full offline mode in about a month and a half; drivers will be able to sign e-CMRs and record delivery stages without the presence of mobile Internet at all, and the system will synchronize data with the cloud as soon as the network appears. In addition, since the Ukrainian system is based on the European e-CMR standard, Vchasno is actively preparing for opening cross-border transportation. The provider is already developing functionality for reading European electronic signatures, which will allow Ukrainian exporters and logistics companies to exchange digital CMRs with partners within the European Union in real time.

A revolutionary view of automation of work processes using AI assistants was offered to the forum participants by Stach Wozniak, CEO and co-founder of Cargofy. Speaker urged the audience to reject the empty media hype around artificial intelligence and look at it as a defining technology of the era, standing on a par with invention of the Internet. He anticipated that the next five years will radically change the usual formats of work, because modern AI is able to perform any digital action that a person does, but with incredible speed, e.g. make thousands of phone calls in one minute. Currently, only up to 6% of companies worldwide use fully autonomous AI agents, but logistics, which still relies not so much on software as on the manual labor of people and disparate microprocesses (calls, instant messengers, notebooks, TMS systems), is an ideal platform for deployment of this technology.

The main concept of Cargofy is not to replace live employees, but to create for them effective digital twins or completely new virtual employees with unique names and positions. Each AI agent has its own virtual laptop and smartphone, which allows it to autonomously open a browser, log in to transport exchanges, negotiate rates and check carriers. This completely solves the chronic problem of the logistics market, such as lack of API in many small services, that is why managers have to transfer data manually. AI agents take on the routine that employees dislike the most (the so-called monkey job), leaving the function of final control and verification of key decisions to humans.

The uniqueness of such platform lies in the fact that it does not impose rigid hard-coded algorithms on the business. On the contrary, Cargofy completely copies the existing organizational structure and the customer’s usual business processes: if employees are comfortable communicating by Viber, the AI agent will correspond there. The system building process begins with an in-depth interview with the company management with an internal AI agent (system architect) involved. This procedure takes up to 5 hours and facilitates full digitalization of regulations that are often stored only in the heads of managers. Thanks to presets and availability of over 100 ready-made integrations with popular tools (including 1C/BAS, Lardi, Vchasno systems), a basic custom architecture for the client is built just within one hour. It takes nearly two weeks to fully connect mail, telephony, messengers and to launch pilot tests; it takes about six months to scale the system to 100% autonomous coverage at a large enterprise with 10 thousand shipments per month. The business receives a completely individual product at the price of a subscription.

Technologically, Cargofy works as a flexible orchestrator, not a rigidly tied language model. The system combines 12 of the best artificial intelligences on the market and allows the client to change contractors on the fly. A dedicated MCP React server shall be deployed for each client, so all commercial data remains safe, while management can instantly generate an analytical presentation based on the company’s internal context. Currently, the company’s geography already covers the markets of Ukraine, the EU, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and the USA. Speaker separately noted the successful experience of automating internal logistics between warehouses and stores for the Aurora Multimarket chain. The company is also actively building similar functionality for sea logistics, air transportation and railways, and offered delegates of the forum to test and to deploy a demo version for free for the individual needs of their business.

Dmytro Pavlenko, partner at Deloitte Ukraine, leader of the infrastructure practice, was the last speaker at the second panel of the forum, whose report concerned the Ukrainian and international experience of digital transformation of logistics. Speaker suggested looking at the industry through the prism of global partnerships and technological shifts, sharing exclusive insights from his author’s blog Infrastructure Conversation. In particular, based on an interview with Philip Swins (HHLA International), he highlighted total robotization as the main global trend of port terminals, while in a conversation with Roman Koloianov (Maersk Ukraine), experts stated that AI is vital, first of all, for the analysis of Big Data in multi-transaction business. Expert paid special attention to new promising vectors of Deloitte, namely attracting Japanese investments through JETRO and JICA, as well as creation of the Ukrainian multimodal grain hubs in Africa with the support of the World Food Programme.

As for realities of Ukraine, speaker emphasized regulatory inevitability of launching eCMR. He recalled that from January 1, 2027, the use of eCMR will become uncompromisingly mandatory, while paper form will be allowed only in exceptional cases, given the subsequent mandatory creation of an identical document in e-system. The Cabinet of Ministers is already drawing up a detailed procedure for the functioning of this system, which will forever change the rules of the game in accounting for freight transportation.

The most acute topic of the speech was the problem of using Russian software 1C and its clones. Dmytro Pavlenko called this situation an elephant in the room, which business is still ignoring in the fifth year of the war. At least 70% of the domestic accounting market is still occupied by the aggressor country, which carries enormous risks of leakage of sensitive corporate and state data. Speaker emphasized that through the accounting department, the enemy sees absolutely everything: what cargo goes where, what exactly is being transported across the border, where the arrival took place and what facilities need repair. No cybersecurity specialist can guarantee that 1C does not leak data to the aggressor.

Currently, the state has already moved to a strict regulatory regulation of this issue: in January, the State Service for Special Communications published the first list of 40 prohibited programs and network equipment, the use whereof is strictly prohibited for governmental bodies, military and critical infrastructure facilities (to which logistics belongs by default). For private business, there is currently no complete legislative ban on using 1C, but Dmytro Pavlenko called on the logistics market to soberly assess the risks. First, any transactions for licenses or software updates are a direct violation of the sanctions regime. Second, large investors, banks and auditors already classify this software as high-risk software, which automatically complicates Due Diligence and attracting foreign capital. A business may face rejection to insure ships and cargo, blocking bank financing and losing the status of a critical enterprise. Strategic goal of the entire financial market today is clear: zero tolerance for Russian and Belarusian software.

Responding to skepticism of accountants and logisticians who claim that there are no alternatives to this software, the expert drew a historical parallel with implementation of CEP and e-invoices. Once the market also assured that Ukraine was not ready for them, but in 3-5 years this became the norm. Speaker summed-up that rejection of 1C is a matter of the near future, dictated by market pressure, economy and regulatory inevitability. Moreover, alternative solutions are already available on the market: Deloitte analyzed all adequate and secure IT providers and presented a detailed comparison of the cost and duration of implementing new ERP systems. Such data gives businesses a clear understanding of how to move away from the Russian digital dependency.

Shipping 2026: A New Reality Instead of Survival Mode

At the third, most anticipated panel of the forum for the maritime community, the first speaker was Arthur Nitsevych, Interlegal partner and moderator of the panel, who presented a short introductory speech which coincided this year with a significant milestone: the 30th anniversary of Interlegal work in the shipping and international trade market. Drawing on thirty years of experience in continuous struggle for the Ukrainian shipping interests, Arthur Nitsevych proposed the audience to rethink fundamentally the current situation and state of the industry.

The expert briefly outlined a range of internal challenges that have been accumulating in the industry for years. They were a chronic shortage of personnel, the alarming state of inland waterways, the sad legacy of the Black Sea Shipping Company and the lack of adequate state policy. Interlegal partner regretfully stated that the domestic maritime industry has been talking about some kind of inexhaustible potential for two decades in a row but still has no opportunity to implement it due to chronic unprofessionalism in the management of the industry. Military realities have added to the list of problems also complex security issues that business is forced to solve on the fly. While Ukrainian ports and companies are fighting every day for the very existence of the shipping industry in Ukraine, the global maritime business focuses on completely different challenges. The world agenda touches the issues of decarbonization, search for alternative fuels, ultimatum of ESG standards, cybersecurity and launching artificial intelligence. But even in difficult times, Odesa, as Arthur Nitsevych noted, does not lag behind global trends: lots of such issues were actively discussed at the forum.

Formulating the principal message of the third panel of the forum, Arthur Nitsevych called on the Ukrainian maritime business to finally get out of the exhausting survival mode. Since the Ukrainian community has already adapted to working in extreme conditions under shelling and anxiety, it is high time to accept the new reality and new rules of the game, boldly look to the future and further integrate deeper into global world processes.

Edgar Martin, international shipping analyst at Infospectrum (which recently joined the global information giant Lloyd’s List Intelligence), presented one of the most emotional reports of the forum regarding wartime compliance, namely its contradictions and misunderstandings in shipping. First of all, speaker announced a curious manifestation of corporate overcompliance: his British employer had literally banned him from officially representing the company in Odesa the day before for security reasons. However, the analyst humorously noted that unofficial status has its advantages, as it allows him to speak absolutely frankly, without corporate censorship and approvals. This situation became a vivid illustration of the main thesis of his report: a deep gap between the panicked, often distorted perception of Ukraine from abroad and the real situation on site.

Analyst noted, there are still persistent myths worldwide about the complete blockade of Ukrainian sea ports, while the reality demonstrates record volumes of cargo turnover and unprecedented resilience of infrastructure under shelling. Expert cited several absurd examples of foreign compliance errors and double standards. He mentioned Asian operators who avoided Ukraine back in 2015, believing that the entire country was engulfed in the flames of war, and Greek shipowners who justified measures against Russian ports in 2022. Another eloquent example concerned the sanctions lists of the UK government. In February 2024, the Turkish company Active Denizcilik (which owns 17 vessels, including 13 tankers that regularly call at Russian ports) was sanctioned, but due to error in translation of the name, the real company was not affected, while in March 2025 it was quietly removed from the lists without any explanation.

In addition, Edgar Martin sharply criticized the policy of international insurers and P&I clubs, which declare their support for Ukraine, but at the same time are still serving Russian business, while military risk rates are set in isolation from the real security situation. Speaker also highlighted total misunderstanding by foreigners of the difference between sanctions-related Russian risks and Ukrainian counterparty analysis, which is why companies simply avoid both markets. Modern artificial intelligence algorithms sometimes only exacerbate the problem: for example, the AI tool Claude blocked a deal with a Ukrainian top manager in Bulgaria simply because his surname seemed too Russian to the algorithm. In addition, foreign compliance software regularly marks as dangerous those vessels that, for safety reasons, turn off the AIS system on the approaches to Ukrainian sea ports. Meantime, expert noted that despite all these misunderstandings, respect for the leading Ukrainian freight operators on the global market is growing, such as Aquavita, BPG Shipping and Transatlantic Commodities, which have long proven their impeccable operational reputation.

Edgar Martin devoted a separate part of his report to Danube logistics. He noted the outstanding decision of the Danube Commission, which managed to completely exclude Russia from its membership (where it had dominated since 1948). Expert also analyzed the recent sensational deal, i.e. transfer of Giurgiulesti sea port under the control of Romania. He noted that despite the political instability in the region, this step is positive, since it blocks the possibility of a hostile takeover of the port, although Giurgiulesti has no real capacities for significant increase in the transshipment of Ukrainian grain, while strengthening of Romanian control over the Sulina Canal may create competitive pressure on Ukrainian ports on the Danube.

Ending his speech on a deeply emotional note, Edgar Martin admitted that for him the Ukrainian transport sector has long ceased to be just a career or a hobby. Having survived the evacuation from Kyiv in the first days of a full-scale invasion, he felt firsthand that Ukrainian logistics is a lifeline that saves families and keeps the country alive. The analyst’s main advice to Ukrainian business in the context of the information vacuum in the West is to continue declaring about itself, actively sharing materials from high-quality English-language media and constantly keeping the real overview of events in the focus of the international community.

Borys Kormych, Head of the Department of Shipping and Customs Law of the National University “Ukrainian Law Academy” and arbitrator of the ICAC at the UCCI, dealt with detailed analysis of the integration of Ukrainian shipping sector into the EU legal field, calling this process in Ukrainian realities a separate art form. He calculated that the national adaptation program requires our state to implement a colossal array of norms, namely 40 regulations, 37 directives and 23 other European acts in shipping industry. Reforms have a clear timeline: digitalization of domestic ports should be completed by December 2026; just by late 2027 Ukraine is obliged to implement at least 80% of all regulations, in 2028 to adapt and to commence transmitting water transport statistics to Eurostat, and by 2030 to fully harmonize work of ports and to integrate into the environmental requirements of the European Green Deal.

Meantime, scientist warned about concealed threats of European integration without a deadline (when a country has to comply with strict EU rules without a vote or financial compensation), the risks of distortion of European norms by our officials who insert their own whims into them, as well as challenges of tough competition between Ukrainian ports and the ports of Gdansk or Rotterdam after potential abolition of customs control at the western land border (through which 54 million tons of cargo passed in 2025, as compared to 80 million tons through ports).

Borys Kormych drew special attention to the European Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) and decarbonization, to be launched in Ukraine at the national level in 2028. He cast doubt on the European Commission’s declaration to reduce marine emissions by 45 million tons by 2030, calling it a certain cunning. Expert announced the magic figure of 100 EUR per ton of emissions (currently the price of the quota fluctuates within 65-82 EUR), the achievement whereof will trigger a massive change in ship routes bypassing EU ports to North Africa, the Middle East and Turkey (up to 20% of voyages are predicted to be redirected in the Mediterranean Sea). The same cost of 100 EUR makes it economically profitable to switch to alternative fuels, and at a price of 150 EUR the use of biofuels will be justified for 75% of ships. However, financial burden falls on shipowners, whose profits in the container segment may fall by 50-55%. An additional challenge for Ukrainian shipping and logistics companies will be the launch of a strict European ESG reporting system (CSRD, CSDDD and EU Taxonomy directives) from late 2026. It will require detailed declaration of Scope 3 emissions, i.e. throughout the supply chain, including tugboat operations and energy costs of port infrastructure, which will create a colossal technological and competitive barrier for domestic business.

Zakhar Medviediev, Director of Nibulon Bessarabian branch, began his speech with a frank answer to the main question of the discussion: is the company’s Danube investment project a strategic look into the future, or is it just a forced military alternative? Speaker recalled that for 34 years of its history Nibulon has become a global trader that exports products to 75 countries worldwide, relying on a network of elevators with capacity of 2 million tons, its own fleet of 83 vessels built in Ukraine, as well as a significant railway and automobile fleet. However, the full-scale war dealt a devastating blow to standard river logistics of the Dnieper and Southern Bug. Five grain elevators are currently under occupation, six are operating with restrictions, Kozatska branch in Kherson region was flooded after the Kakhovka hydroelectric power station was blown up, while Zelenodolska branch in Dnipropetrovsk region completely stopped operating due to hostilities and blocked infrastructure.

Response to such catastrophic challenges was construction of the handling terminal in Izmail in spring 2022. Nibulon invested over 20 million USD in this critical facility, which saved the company from a standstill and helped unload kilometer-long truck queues in the Danube region during the harvest. Today, this hub is a full-fledged long-term business asset. The company has managed to flexibly reformat its logistics chains. Currently, the blocked terminal in Mykolaiv is successfully operating in the dry port mode: it receives, dries, accumulates grain, brings it to basic conditions and sends it by rail to the ports of Greater Odesa. In parallel, Nibulon has modernized its facilities on the Danube, introducing technological solutions for loading vessels with carrying capacity up to 7.5 thousand tons. The terminal in Izmail has already successfully handled over 50 such vessels, which is currently the most effective logistics direction, since conventional transportation by barge-tow caravans to Constanta has a much more complicated economy.

Revolutionary changes have also occurred in the quality control system. Nibulon has united all its laboratories into a single centralized digital ecosystem: the indicators of measuring devices are synchronized with each other, which completely eliminates the human factor or the possibility of point manipulation of the results of the analyses at any of the facilities. The company is particularly proud of total automation of relations with suppliers based on the IT-Enterprise system. Nibulon has completely switched to paperless document management: now over 99% of all contracts with suppliers have been entered in e-form, which eliminated the need for paper archives and courier costs. In addition, the company has developed a mobile application and chatbots for drivers who register in electronic queues and pre-download CMR data. In the partner’s account, over 3,900 users can track prices online, book storage volumes, order laboratory services and accumulate loyalty points that allow them to receive analysis services for a symbolic one UAH.

Along with grain logistics, the company is actively developing coastal transportation on the Danube. During 2025, the Nibulon fleet consisting of 12 tugboats and 17 barges with total capacity of 62 thousand tons, transported over 110 thousand tons of various cargo. Finally, Zakhar Medviediev emphasized that despite the restoration of Greater Odesa, the Danube region remains a critically important reserve shield of the state, however, it needs the support of Ukrzaliznytsia in terms of tariff policy, which currently makes rail transportation to the Danube uncompetitive compared to deep water.

Karyna Gorovaya, Interlegal partner, attorney-at-law and arbitrator of the ICAC at the UCCI, presented in her speech a deep and practical case analysis of the law firm, clearly demonstrating the main legal challenges, pain points and real requests that Ukrainian and foreign businesses currently face during transportation in the Black Sea and Danube region. The speaker emphasized that over 30 years of work, Interlegal has formed a clear and uncompromising focus on maritime, transport law and international trade, uniting more than 60 experts in its own offices throughout the Black Sea region (in Romania, Turkey, Georgia, Bulgaria, Moldova) and Cyprus. The main point of law firm’s pride is that the team manages to settle over 70% of all disputes in a pre-trial order, preserving partnership relations between the parties and saving clients’ resources.

Within shipping practice, the speaker shared unique stories of saving businesses from crisis situations, including complex cases of ship arrest and release (in particular, the settlement of an incident in Turkey, where a vessel damaged a bridge support in the port), pretrial settlement of disputes due to supply of low-quality fuel and successful resolution of a double collision of vessels in Romania without involving the court. A vivid example of professional legal work was the case of a vessel being delayed at the terminal for almost a month due to unavailability of cargo. Interlegal lawyers managed to completely refute the arguments of the charterer, who tried to avoid paying the detention, relying on the closure of the passage due to stormy weather, and to protect the shipowner’s interests.

In land transport practice, the case of the urgent release of a truck arrested in Germany, carrying a critically important drilling rig for water extraction to dehydrated Mykolaiv, had a particular social importance. Other high-profile proceedings meant court compulsion to issue Chinese containers, which after opening turned out to be empty; now Interlegal lawyers are conducting a case against an unscrupulous supplier directly in a Chinese court. In international trade, Interlegal experts traditionally demonstrate strong results in GAFTA and FOSFA arbitrations, where the main emphasis is not only on obtaining a decision, but also on the actual collection of funds. In one of the cases in Spain, lawyers managed to instantly collect a debt by simply freezing the bank accounts of the Spanish debtor based on arbitration award.

Apart from claims handling, Interlegal actively engages local traders in export transactions under CIF terms. Corporate and tax practices focus on protecting investments abroad, drafting shareholder agreements (SHA) and redomiciling companies (e.g., re-registering business from Panama to Cyprus with full preservation of history, accounts and assets). In yachting sector, the law team supports extremely complex and expensive purchase and sale transactions (in particular, a case in the amount over 10 million EUR), as well as resolving emergency crisis situations, such as successfully closing a deal just 72 hours before the deadline, when the buyer and seller could not find a common language. Finally, Karyna Gorovaya summarized that while in Ukraine legal requests are most often related to crisis management (collisions, arrests, losses), abroad Ukrainian business is increasingly focused on development, structuring and expansion, boldly entering new markets.

In the end of the intensive day of the forum, there was the traditional evening buffet Odesa Shipping Evening 2026, where participants were finally able to take off their ties and to talk without timing and protocol. In the informal atmosphere of professional networking, conversations started at the panel discussions continued and deepened: discussion touched new projects, prospects for cooperation, personal challenges that each market player faces, and opportunities that open up even in difficult times. It is here, behind the scenes, that the most interesting ideas and future projects are born, foundation for new networking and partnership is laid, joint initiatives are launched and decisions are made that subsequently affect development of the entire transport and logistics industry.

European Integration and Digitalization as a New Stage of Development for the Ukrainian Transport Industry

Analysis of key discussions of the Ukrainian Transport Forum 2026 allows us to identify individual vectors that will determine the rules of the game in Ukrainian logistics and shipping in the coming years. These are not just theoretical forecasts, but a concrete roadmap for Ukrainian business.

First of all, it should be noted that European integration has finally ceased to be an abstract political vector, while transition to EU standards is a distant prospect. The state has set strict timelines, and in January the market will receive a full-fledged launch of e-CMR and a new Customs Code. Ukrainian business can be safely advised not to wait for the deadline, but to configure API integration of corporate ERP systems with customs services and e-CMR providers right now, work out AEO status and test digital transit chains. Experience of the forum speakers proves that transition to European customs procedures (NCTS, AEO, LCP) can save companies hundreds of millions UAH and speed up cargo delivery. Meantime, European integration carries hidden challenges: after the abolition of customs control at the western land border, Ukrainian sea ports will directly compete with the ports of Gdansk, Rotterdam and Constanta. However, introduction of the European ESG reporting system and launching the emissions trading system (EU ETS) will create additional pressure on Ukrainian business; therefore, companies are faced with the task of learning how to calculate their carbon footprint and prepare for ESG audits.

New opportunities for the transport business, as for many other industries, have opened up through rapid development of artificial intelligence. Involvement of digital assistants in work, digitalization and automation of business and process management systems means not only simplifying routine tasks and optimizing processes, but also increasing the speed of decision-making, reducing operating costs, improving quality of service and strengthening competitive positions of companies in the market. In an industry where time, accuracy and predictability are of critical importance, artificial intelligence technologies are becoming not just an advantage, but an urgent necessity. Experts recommend digitizing internal regulations and procedures as soon as possible, which often exist only in the heads of individual experts. The next step may be implementation of AI solutions to perform simple linear tasks, from automatic tracking of cargo movements up to collecting and analyzing rates. Gradually, such tools can be scaled to the entire supply chain, providing companies with higher efficiency, predictability and controllability of processes.

Ukrainian Transport Forum 2026 made it clear that the main challenge for the Ukrainian transport sector today is not just survival in war conditions, but preparation for the future: the transition from crisis reactions and tactical survival to strategic planning. Digitalization, integration with European markets, process automation, cybersecurity and environmental standards are shaping the new reality in which the logistics business will operate in the forthcoming decade. The mood that prevailed at the forum showed that the Ukrainian transport sector is already not only preparing for such challenges but also seeks to take an active part in shaping the future architecture of global logistics.