MERCHANT NAVY
the totality of the country's courts, together with their personnel, engaged in commercial activities. Sea cargo ships have always been the most important component of the merchant fleet and its main support in the financial sense. Passenger liners did not stop attracting people, but in general, for society, the transport of passengers has always been of less importance than the transport of goods. Numerous and varied ships of the merchant fleet differ in type and purpose. The total number of ships in the merchant fleet is also very large because it includes not only long-distance ships, but also many of those small ships that serve the waters of rivers, harbors and the sea coast. The merchant fleet - in the broad sense of the term - includes not only ships and seafarers, but also numerous coastal services: operational management, repair and bunkering companies, marine insurance agencies and much more, in addition to shipyards, docks, wharfs and warehouses.
SAILBOATS COLUMBA - "Nina", "Pinta" and "Santa Maria" - in search of India.
Merchant ships, unlike military ones, are usually owned by private owners, whose position is relatively independent (sometimes the state owns part of the country's merchant fleet and manages its activities, but this is the exception rather than the rule). All modern sea vessels have a national status symbolized by the flag that flies over each ship. Raising the flag implies the presence of official ship documents and a register certificate. National status entails both privileges and duties. It allows you to enlist the naval or diplomatic support of your own and friendly states in different parts of the world, but it also gives the government the right to dispose of private ships in emergency circumstances, and under normal circumstances to extend state regulations to them and to the conditions of their operation. These norms include requirements for the national composition of the crew, for checking the qualifications of the crew and attesting the command staff. Modern merchant ships can be divided into two categories, each of which has its own merits. Vessels of one category (liners), which includes the majority best ships, operate on certain lines, and flights between ports on these routes are made at regular intervals. Another category consists of the so-called. tramps - vessels serving irregular cargo flows. After the Second World War, significant changes took place in maritime transport. Although the number of ships capable of taking on board more than 1000 tons of cargo increased only by 34% in the post-war years, the total tonnage of the merchant fleet of the countries of the world doubled, and the average deadweight jumped from 6300 to 9400 tons. The number of national flags increased sharply. The expansion of the national composition of the world merchant fleet has led to a decrease in the share of the former leaders of shipping in it. Although the total tonnage of the total British and Scandinavian ships increased from 32 to 47 million tons, its share in the total tonnage of the world merchant fleet fell from 40 to 29%. At the same time, the US share increased from 14% to 20%. An innovation in the merchant fleet of the 20th century. the practice of what is known as "flags of convenience" or "uncontrolled fleets" became common. Usually the flag above the vessel and the name of its home port indicate to whom it belongs and in whose legal sphere is valid. Maritime law was created on the basis of certain measures of responsibility and control on the part of states over their merchant fleet. In order to elude such control, and at the same time save on taxes and crew costs, new "fake" fleets appeared. These fleets arose precisely from those countries that in reality never had their own "legitimate" maritime transport, and many ships flying the flags of these states never called at those ports whose names are written on their stern. It began in the autumn of 1922, when the US Attorney General extended the Prohibition with all its amendments to all ships flying the US flag. This stopped the wholesale alcoholic supplies of two large liners that made voyages in the Caribbean. The solution was found when someone came up with the idea to launch these ships under the Panamanian flag. Later, the Panamanian flag was used by other ships, especially American tankers, so as not to spend money on high salary crew, and during the war it proved to be a convenient way to dodge government regulations and sail in areas closed to maritime transport. Thanks to this, by the beginning of World War II, the total carrying capacity of the Panamanian merchant fleet, which numbered 130 of its own ships, reached 1106 thousand tons. After the war, this fleet became even larger, but in 1949 it suddenly had a formidable rival. The government of Liberia has given one of the American companies the pre-emptive right to the wide sea transportation of goods. At the same time, Liberia received a coveted increase in its budget from duties, and an American company a generous "fee for services" to conduct specific business in New York. For 10 years, the Liberian merchant fleet has become the third largest in the world; it became 1018 vessels with a total carrying capacity of 18,387 thousand tons, and Panama was pushed to sixth place. By 1959, the German merchant fleet showed by 1959 far surpassed the total volumes that were characterized in 1939. The Japanese, whose large merchant fleet was also destroyed, by 1959 also managed to exceed its pre-war level in terms of the total tonnage of their ships, and in 1994 came to seventh place among the merchant fleets. fleets of the world and built 243 out of a total of 630 new ships.
Between 1939 and 1959, the number of tankers in the world almost doubled (the number of registered oil tankers increased from 1661 to 3307 units), and their total tonnage more than tripled (total deadweight changed from 16,915 to 57,629 thousand tons) . In the future, the oil fleet grew even faster. The efficiency of tankers has been constantly increasing, since the larger the size of the tanker, the more economically profitable it is to operate, which distinguishes oil tankers from other types of bulky transports. Another post-war innovation was the increase in the number of ships carrying bulk cargoes such as coal and ore. Already in 1959, the merchant fleet of the world numbered 940 bulk carriers with a total carrying capacity of 9058 thousand tons. Bulk carriers up to 300 m long and with a carrying capacity of more than 60 thousand tons were built.
At the end of the 20th century Large container carriers with a horizontal method of loading - unloading of the Ro-Ro type and lighter carriers have become widespread, providing reloading in the road with their own means with an increase in the productivity of cargo operations by several times.
see also
VESSELS OF RIVER AND COASTAL NAVIGATION;
HARBOR.
Collier Encyclopedia. - Open society. 2000 .
See what "COMMERCIAL FLEET" is in other dictionaries:
- (Mercantile marine, merchant shipping) see Commercial fleet. Samoilov K.I. Marine Dictionary. M. L.: State Naval Publishing House of the NKVMF USSR, 1941 Merchant Navy See Transport ... Marine Dictionary
MERCHANT NAVY- the totality of the courts of the country, together with their personnel, engaged in commercial activities. Marine cargo ships have always been the most important part of the T.f. and its main financial support. Passenger liners did not stop attracting ... ... Legal Encyclopedia
A set of vessels used for non-military maritime activities. nature: for the transportation of goods, passengers, luggage, mail, for fishing and other crafts, mining, towing, icebreaking and rescue. operations and... Big encyclopedic polytechnic dictionary
MERCHANT NAVY- a set of ships of all types used for the transport of people and goods, servicing navigation, mining, fishing and other economic activity people who are not of a military nature. The basis of the merchant fleet is ... ... Marine encyclopedic reference book
- ... Wikipedia
- (Merchant navy) a set of transport, fishing and other vessels of any state. More correct term civilian fleet. Samoilov K.I. Marine Dictionary. M. L .: State Naval Publishing House of the NKVMF of the USSR, 1941 ... Marine Dictionary
Cargo transshipment complex in Massandra Yalta port is a commercial seaport on the southern coast of Crimea. In the center of Yalta there is a passenger complex, to the east in Massandra there is a cargo-passenger complex. Port points and berths for ... ... Wikipedia
FLEET, fleet, male. (Dutch. flot). 1. The totality of military or merchant ships of a country (or some kind of organization). Navy of the Soviet Union. Military fleet. Merchant navy. English fleet. River fleet. “And he went to meet the grandfather of the whole ... ... Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov
TRADING, trading, trading. 1. adj., by value. associated with the organization and conduct of trade. Trading capital. Trading profit. Commercial law. Trade policy. Trade agreement. Reseller. 2. Engaged in trade, one where ... ... Explanatory Dictionary of Ushakov
United States Navy (USN) US Navy Emblem of the US Department of the Navy Year of formation Country USA ... Wikipedia
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- Wall to wall, Evgeny Sukhov, In an uncompromising struggle for the redistribution of state property, the interests of the thieves' community and corrupt representatives of the current Russian nomenklatura clashed. On the new… Category: Domestic male detective Series: I am a thief in law Publisher:
MERCHANT NAVY, the totality of the country's courts, together with their personnel, engaged in commercial activities. Sea cargo ships have always been the most important component of the merchant fleet and its main support in the financial sense. Passenger liners did not stop attracting people, but in general, for society, the transport of passengers has always been of less importance than the transport of goods. Numerous and varied ships of the merchant fleet differ in type and purpose. The total number of ships in the merchant fleet is also very large because it includes not only long-distance ships, but also many of those small ships that serve the waters of rivers, harbors and the sea coast. The merchant fleet - in the broad sense of the term - includes not only ships and seafarers, but also numerous coastal services: operational management bodies, repair and bunkering enterprises, marine insurance agencies and much more, in addition to shipyards, docks, berths and warehouses.
Merchant ships, unlike military ones, are usually owned by private owners, whose position is relatively independent (sometimes the state owns part of the country's merchant fleet and manages its activities, but this is the exception rather than the rule). All modern maritime vessels have a national status, which is symbolized by the flag that flies over each vessel. Raising the flag implies the presence of official ship documents and a register certificate. National status entails both privileges and duties. It allows you to enlist the naval or diplomatic support of your own and friendly states in different parts of the world, but it also gives the government the right to dispose of private ships in emergency circumstances, and under normal circumstances to extend state regulations to them and to the conditions of their operation. These norms include requirements for the national composition of the crew, for checking the qualifications of the crew and attesting the command staff.
Modern merchant ships can be divided into two categories, each of which has its own merits. Vessels of one category (liners), which includes most of the best ships, operate on certain lines, and voyages between ports on these routes are made at regular intervals. Another category consists of the so-called. tramps - vessels serving irregular cargo flows.
After the Second World War, significant changes took place in maritime transport. Although the number of ships capable of taking on board more than 1000 tons of cargo increased only by 34% in the post-war years, the total tonnage of the merchant fleet of the countries of the world doubled, and the average deadweight jumped from 6300 to 9400 tons. The number of national flags increased sharply.
The expansion of the national composition of the world merchant fleet has led to a decrease in the share of the former leaders of shipping in it. Although the total tonnage of the total British and Scandinavian ships increased from 32 to 47 million tons, its share in the total tonnage of the world merchant fleet fell from 40 to 29%. At the same time, the US share increased from 14% to 20%.
An innovation in the merchant fleet of the 20th century. the practice of what is known as "flags of convenience" or "runaway fleets" became common. Usually the flag above the vessel and the name of its home port indicate to whom it belongs and in whose legal sphere it operates. Maritime law was created on the basis of certain measures of responsibility and control on the part of states over their merchant fleet. To elude such control, and at the same time save on taxes and crew costs, new "fake" fleets appeared. These fleets arose precisely from those countries that in reality never had their own "legitimate" maritime transport, and many ships flying the flags of these states never called at the ports whose names are written on their stern. It began in the autumn of 1922, when the US Attorney General extended the Prohibition with all its amendments to all ships flying the US flag. This stopped the wholesale alcoholic supplies of two large liners that made voyages in the Caribbean. The solution was found when someone came up with the idea to launch these ships under the Panamanian flag. Later, other ships, especially American tankers, used the Panamanian flag to save money on high crew salaries, and during the war it proved to be a convenient way to evade government regulations and sail in areas closed to sea traffic. Thanks to this, by the beginning of World War II, the total carrying capacity of the Panamanian merchant fleet, which numbered 130 of its own ships, reached 1106 thousand tons. After the war, this fleet became even larger, but in 1949 it suddenly had a formidable rival.
The government of Liberia has given one of the American companies the pre-emptive right to the wide sea transportation of goods. At the same time, Liberia received a coveted increase in its budget from the toll, and the American company received a generous “fee for services” to conduct specific cases in New York. For 10 years, the Liberian merchant fleet has become the third largest in the world; it became 1018 vessels with a total carrying capacity of 18,387 thousand tons, and Panama was pushed to sixth place.
By 1959, the German merchant fleet showed by 1959 far surpassed the total volumes that were characterized in 1939. The Japanese, whose large merchant fleet was also destroyed, by 1959 also managed to exceed its pre-war level in terms of the total tonnage of their ships, and in 1994 came to seventh place among the merchant fleets. fleets of the world and built 243 out of a total of 630 new ships.
Between 1939 and 1959, the number of tankers in the world almost doubled (the number of registered oil tankers increased from 1661 to 3307 units), and their total tonnage more than tripled (total deadweight changed from 16,915 to 57,629 thousand tons) . In the future, the oil fleet grew even faster. The efficiency of tankers has been constantly increasing, since the larger the size of the tanker, the more economically profitable it is to operate, which distinguishes oil tankers from other types of bulky transports.
Another post-war innovation was the increase in the number of ships carrying bulk cargoes such as coal and ore. Already in 1959, the merchant fleet of the world numbered 940 bulk carriers with a total carrying capacity of 9058 thousand tons. Bulk carriers up to 300 m long and with a carrying capacity of more than 60 thousand tons were built.
At the end of the 20th century Large container carriers with a horizontal method of loading - unloading of the Ro-Ro type and lighter carriers have become widespread, providing reloading in the road with their own means with an increase in the productivity of cargo operations by several times.
MERCHANT FLEET IN THE HISTORY OF RUSSIA
Vladimir Kontrovsky
25 October 1925 of the year, exactly eighty years ago, from stocks BAltianshipbuildingfactoryin Leningradgot offfirstSoviettradingcourt " GregoryZinoviev" and " ComradeStalin". Thus began the history of the Soviet merchant fleet.Russian merchant fleet
The history of the merchant marine fleet of our country is rooted in hoary antiquity. Back in the days of Kievan Rus, our ancestors made trade trips along the Black Sea to Byzantium, sailed in the Caspian. Later, the Novgorod Slavs sailed across the Baltic Sea to the Hanseatic cities, and in the 11th-12th centuries they came to the shores of the White Sea. In the XV-XVII centuries, Pomors sailed on boats and boats to Murman, Novaya Zemlya, Mangazeya and even to the subpolar Grumant archipelago. By the end of the 17th century, industrial and service people crossed Siberia in pursuit of furs and reached the shores of the Far Eastern seas. Even then, there was an awareness of the need for Russia to have its own military and merchant fleet. Attempts to create it were made under Ivan the Terrible, Boris Godunov, Mikhail and Alexei Romanov. But in reality, this was only realized under Peter the Great. navy. Since that time, Russia began to turn into a great maritime power. While intensive construction of warships for the Sea of Azov was going on in Voronezh, from 1696 to 1701, at the sovereign shipyard in Solombala, 6 three-deck merchant ships were built, which soon appeared in the ports of Europe. This is another reason to consider the decisions of the Boyar Duma the beginning of the creation of the state merchant fleet of Russia. Private, merchant "new manner" ships were also built in the north. Together with transport warships, this local fleet fully provided for the transportation of coastal cargo in the North, the Caspian Sea, the Far East, and to a large extent - in the Baltic Sea. A qualitatively new period began in the history of the domestic merchant fleet from the middle of the 19th century. Due to significant subsidies in the North, the Baltic, in the southern seas of Russia and the Far East, a number of shipping companies were created in the 60-70s. The largest of them were the Russian Society of Shipping and Trade (ROPiT) and Dobroflot. Russian merchant steamships go beyond coastal seas, develop transoceanic lines, make regular voyages in the Arctic and the Far East. To manage the industry in 1903, the Main Directorate of Merchant Shipping was created, which later became part of the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Training of personnel for navigators and mechanics is organized. The civil war caused enormous damage to the navy and ports. Suffice it to say that out of 1,120 steamships available on January 1, 1915, in 1921 only 220 ships remained in the country. Many ports and shipyards were destroyed. In difficult conditions of general devastation, the restoration of maritime transport took place in the 20-30s. Despite the difficulties, the transport fleet actively participated in the development of the Arctic and the Far East, made heroic voyages to the fighting Spain. During the same period, important organizational arrangements in the field of maritime transport management. On July 18, 1924, the joint-stock company "Soviet Merchant Fleet" ("Sovtorgflot") was organized, uniting transport ships that previously belonged to various people's commissariats, departments and joint-stock companies, including mixed, with the participation of foreign capital. This act laid the foundations for the centralized management of maritime transport as a single branch of the national economy, its infrastructure was formed, including not only ships, but also ports, ship repair yards, and educational institutions. Already the first year of work has confirmed the expediency of establishing Sovtorgflot, which has achieved high results. Particularly increased transportation in small cabotage - more than 1.5 times. With the formation of "Sovtorgflot" the beginning of the replenishment of the fleet with ships of domestic construction is also connected. For 1928-1932 maritime transport received 66 ships from domestic shipyards and 44 ships of foreign construction. The restoration of the country's port economy was successfully completed. Port cargo turnover in 1932 reached 48.6 million tons, exceeding the level of 1913. Major work was carried out to reconstruct the seaports in Leningrad, Arkhangelsk, and Vladivostok. New berths, warehouses, passenger stations were built, mechanization facilities were increased. The construction of new ports began (Tiksi, Moskalvo, etc.). Shipyards were expanded and reconstructed. The training of personnel for the navy in the 1930s was carried out in branch educational institutions - in two universities (in Leningrad and Odessa) and in seven maritime technical schools. Maritime schools were organized to train enlisted specialists. The navy in the 1930s significantly expanded the navigation areas thanks to the heroic voyages of the A. Sibiryakov, F. Litke, Chelyuskin, G. Sedov ships. On a large scale, the development of the Northern Sea Route was begun and its transformation into a permanent highway.
During the years of the Great Patriotic War
The final registration of maritime transport as an independent economic branch of the national economy took place before the Great Patriotic War. The sea fleet has become an important part of the unified transport system of the country. From the first hours of the war, all 14 shipping companies, 51 sea port, 27 shipyards and other enterprises subordinated their activities to military needs. About 100 ships were immediately handed over to the Navy, some of them came under the operational control of the military fleets. In the Baltic, the war began on June 22, 1941 - the Germans in advance (on June 20-21) secretly made mine laying. Early in the morning on July 22, 1941, the Nazis attacked the unarmed steamer Gaisma, which was heading to Germany with a load of timber. Off the island of Gotland, the ship was attacked by four boats and torpedoed. Of the 80 crew members, seven sailors were killed. Almost simultaneously with the attack on the "Gaisma" near the island of Kotlin, a fascist plane fired on the steamer "Luga". The Baltic ports (Liepaja, Ventspils, Riga) were left one after another - in the most difficult conditions - and troops and equipment were taken out on board merchant ships. On the night of June 30, the sailors of the Lachplesis icebreaker dragged the Kirov cruiser through the shallow Moonsund Strait, which ran aground six times. With the same difficulty, large merchant ships of the Latvian Shipping Company passed through the strait - two weeks after leaving Riga, twenty ships arrived in Leningrad. The fate of 29 transport ships that left Tallinn on August 28, 1941 was tragic. The caravan went through continuous minefields under continuous attacks from the air. The losses of the merchant fleet participating in this operation turned out to be huge: out of 29 ships, only two reached Leningrad, two more ships remained off Gogland Island, and 25 were sunk. The Tallinn crossing in 1941 became one of the most difficult operations for the entire period of the Great Patriotic War. The death of the brave killed many of the best sailors of the transport fleet. One of the last left Tallinn steamship "Kazakhstan". Fascist dive bombers furiously attacked the ship, the bombs hit the boiler room, a fire started. For nine hours, the crew and the Red Army soldiers on board fought the fire and knocked down the flames. But then enemy planes again fell on "Kazakhstan". Bombs exploded next to the side. Only seven people remained from the crew. A fire was simulated on the ship, and the Nazis, confident in the death of the ship, stopped the attacks. The sailors managed to repair the damage, divorced the couples, and on the fourth day after leaving Tallinn, the "Kazakhstan" arrived in Kronstadt. Among the three ships damaged by aircraft and left at Gogland was the steamer Saule, commanded by sea captain Anna Ivanovna Shchetinina, the only female captain in the USSR merchant fleet. Despite the raids of fascist aircraft, the ship's crew repaired the damage, the ship refloated and safely arrived in Leningrad. On the Black Sea, merchant ships supplied and evacuated besieged ports. So, during the defense of Odessa, sailors of the transport fleet took 350 thousand soldiers and civilians and about 100 thousand tons of various cargoes to Sevastopol and other ports. In November 1941, the fascist armies launched an offensive against Sevastopol, and the connection of the besieged main base Black Sea Fleet with the country was carried out only by sea. 20 transport vessels took part in the Kerch-Feodosiya landing operation. One of the first to enter the port of Feodosia and landed the landing units of the Red Army was the steamship "Fabricius" under the command of Captain M. Grigor. The ship "Kuban" four times (its captain Vislobokov died on the first voyage) came from Novorossiysk to Feodosia with landing troops. After the landing, transport ships continued to make flights to the Crimea, supplying the advancing Red Army troops with everything necessary. In the winter and spring of 1942, the merchant fleet, despite the blockade, delivered military supplies to Sevastopol. Flights of transport ships ceased only in June 1942, when even surface warships of the Black Sea Fleet could no longer break through to Sevastopol. Since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War, three Caspian shipping companies - dry-cargo ("Kaspflot"), oil-loader ("Kasptanker") and offshore oil-loader ("Reidtanker") - have reorganized their work for the needs of the country's defense. Already in July 1941 in Kazakhstan and the republics Central Asia the evacuation of the population, dismantled equipment, grain cargoes from the western regions of the country began. Oil and oil products were sent to the Volga. Military formations, military equipment and ammunition were transferred from the Central Asian republics to the western ports of the Caspian Sea. At the same time (in August 1941), several large transport ships took part in the transportation of Soviet troops, which were temporarily introduced to Iran in accordance with the existing agreement. The sailors did everything to fulfill the tasks for transportation: they reduced the time for loading, unloading and repairing ships, loaded the ships in excess of the established norm, adapted the cargo spaces of the ships for passengers and accommodated passengers on deck. On the decks of tankers in July-December 1941, Caspian sailors transported over 100 thousand people. During the battles for North Caucasus and the Volga front approached the Caspian, and the sailors had to work under the blows of enemy bombers. The fascist aviation was especially rampant in the Astrakhan roadstead - fuel was unloaded right under the bombing. As a result of enemy air raids in 1942, the Caspian merchant fleet lost 32 transport ships, about 100 sailors died at their combat posts. By the end of 1941, the directions of external transportation were determined for the navy. The Baltic and the Black Sea were cut off - the North and the Far East remained. The main flow of Lend-Lease supplies went through Murmansk and Arkhangelsk, and as part of the polar convoys, along with the transports of the allied powers, ships of the Soviet merchant fleet also made voyages. In May 1942, the ship "Old Bolshevik", loaded with weapons and ammunition, went as part of the allied convoy "PQ-16" from England to Russia. The convoy, escorted by English escorts, was furiously attacked by the Luftwaffe forces. For three days, the heroic ship withstood 47 bomber attacks. During one of them, a bomb hit the forecastle, a fire started on the ship. And the attacks did not stop - the enemy sought to finish off the ship. Anti-aircraft gunners shot down one dive bomber and drove the rest, but the fire intensified. The commander of the English convoy suggested that our sailors leave the ship and go to one of the escort ships. The captain of the ship, Afanasiev, ordered to hand over to the commodore of the convoy: "We are not going to bury our ship." The convoy left, leaving the Soviet sailors alone in the ocean on a burning ship. But what was the amazement of the allies when, two days later, the Old Bolshevik, having coped with the fire and damage, caught up with the convoy and took its place in the order. The plans of the "Kriegsmarine" to prevent traffic along the Northern Sea Route were thwarted thanks to the courage of the sailors of the icebreaker "Sibiryakov" (Captain Kacharava). Attacked by the German raider "Admiral Scheer" in the Kara Sea, "Sibiryakov" accepted an unequal battle and, at the cost of his death, managed to report on the radio about the appearance of a pirate. After that, "Sheer" considered it best to stop the raid. Sailors of the merchant fleet of the Far East also worked in the main direction of wartime external shipping. Here they regularly made flights to the United States, South America, Canada, Australia, delivering military supplies from there. Vessels of the Far Eastern Shipping Company performed transportation on northern communications, plowed the waters of the Indian Ocean, went to the ports of the Persian Gulf. At the beginning of December 1941, in the Far East, Japan began a war against the USA, England and Holland. Although the Soviet Union was not at war with this country, the Japanese launched piracy against the merchant fleet of our country. In Hong Kong, on December 14, the steamer "Krechet" was sunk; in the Celebes Sea near the Philippines, on December 20, Japanese aircraft sank the tanker "Maikop". The crew of the ship "Perekop" (Captain Demidov), sunk on December 18 by Japanese aircraft in the South China Sea, landed on Bolshoy Natuna Island, and only in November 1943 returned to Vladivostok. In 1942-1944. the Japanese sank a number of ships of the Far Eastern Shipping Company, and in May 1942 the steamer "Uelen" (Captain Malakhov), en route to Australia, was attacked by an "unknown" submarine. A two-hour artillery duel ensued, during which the Uelen sailors sent the submarine to the bottom. And in 1945 the merchant fleet took part in the landings on Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.
Fleet recovery
The war left heavy traces: the industry lost 380 ships with a deadweight of about 1 million tons, more than 90 ports were destroyed, and many ship repair enterprises. Only four merchant ships survived the war in the Baltic. The trophy fleet did not make up for these losses, and the "disposable" (it was assumed that their construction cost paid off in one transatlantic crossing) received under Lend-Lease "Liberty" type transports were not designed for long-term operation. For the second time in three decades, the country had to spend a lot of effort and money to restore maritime transport. From the end of the 50s, the industry began to rapidly develop and replenish it with new ships. Already in 1965, the country's marine transport fleet amounted to 1,187 ships with a total deadweight of 8.4 million tons and came in 6th place in the world. It has become the main mode of transport in the country's foreign trade transportation. Transport ships began to work on cargo and passenger lines connecting our country with many countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and America, made long voyages to Cuba, Vietnam, Australia and New Zealand, as well as to the sixth continent - Antarctica. Thanks to the construction of new icebreakers led by the Lenin nuclear-powered icebreaker, the duration of navigation in the Arctic was significantly increased. Later it became year-round in the Kara Sea. The unique voyages of Soviet ships to the North Pole, to Antarctica and to other areas of the World Ocean for industrial and research purposes have raised the prestige of our fleet in the world. The 70-80s became the time of a qualitatively new rise in the merchant fleet: in addition to domestic ships, it included a large number of foreign-built ships. The merchant fleet of the USSR confidently occupied a worthy place in the world market of cargo transportation. But then everything changed, as life itself changed radically. Today, Russian maritime transport as an industry includes organizations, associations, institutions various forms property, engaged in sea transportation, stevedoring, transport and forwarding activities, repair and technical operation ships and ship equipment, research, design and survey work, personnel training and other activities related to merchant shipping. On March 15, 1996, by the Decree of the President of the Russian Federation, the Department of Maritime Transport of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation was transformed into the Federal Service of the Marine Fleet of Russia. Fleet in charge Federal Service of the marine fleet of Russia, is about 780 vessels with a deadweight of 10.3 million tons. Maritime transport in Russia today is 10 shipping companies, 41 seaports, 13 shipyards, 4 research institutes, 2 design and survey bureaus, 3 maritime academies, 7 specialized secondary educational institutions. And besides, about 700 joint and private enterprises and organizations that have received licenses from the Service for the right to operate. The "Program for the revival of the Russian merchant fleet" was adopted, aimed at restoring this strategic industry, which provides political and economic security and independence of the country in foreign trade. The program provides for the development of maritime transport in three areas: the supply of sea vessels; development of seaports and railway approaches to them; development of maritime transport infrastructure. The implementation of the program is envisaged to be carried out at the expense of the enterprises' own funds; the specially created Fund for the Revival of the Merchant Fleet of Russia; attracted funds from domestic and foreign investors; federal budget. The implementation of the "Program" will allow Russia to have a fleet worthy of a great maritime power. PeterI once said the following: "A power that only has an army has one hand, and which has a fleet - both." The first Russian emperor was smart... True, he had in mind a military fleet, not a merchant fleet, but these two fleets very often perform a common task.
2.5. Merchant navy
Purchasing or chartering the desired ship in certain time was a critical condition for success in international commerce. If the investment costs were not too high, merchants were willing to invest in the purchase of ships. Regarding the era of the sailing fleet, there are no known cases of Russian trading firms extending their interests to the shipping industry. Until the middle of the XIX century. shipownership has not yet become an independent type of business in Russia, although in the practice of international trading firms own ships were not uncommon. Some Western European trading houses that participated in Russian foreign trade in the first half of the 19th century. and earlier, had such ships, as the example of Brandt, the Ralli brothers and Vogau shows. By the middle of the XIX century. the Ralli brothers invested about £30,000 in merchant ships. Art. 194
In the XVIII century. some Russian-owned trading houses involved in international trade operated with the help of their own ships, although they did not achieve any noticeable commercial result. The exception was the "Russian Columbus" Grigory Shelikhov (1747-1795), who established profitable merchant shipping between Siberia, the Aleutian Islands and the coast North America, having founded in 1781 the North-Eastern American company, the predecessor of the Russian-American Company 196 . On the whole, Russian international trade at sea during this period continued to be served mainly by foreign vessels 197 .
Some progress was nevertheless evident 198 . By the end of the XVIII century. 9.2% of the ships that took part in international trade, belonged to Russian subjects 199 , although it is impossible not to notice that foreign captains often accepted and persuaded part of the crew to accept Russian citizenship in order to take advantage of the benefits that Russian shipowners are entitled to by law 200 . In the 1870s the captains of such major merchant ships as the Peter the Great, Catherine II and Rurik were foreigners by origin 201 . In the 1880s The Society for the Promotion of Russian Merchant Shipping complained that because of loopholes in the law, "foreigners not only own our (i.e., Russian. - S.T.) ships, but also command them." Companies such as Brodsky and Tweedy, Webster and Kovalenko, and Anatra Brothers, whose Russian names of co-owners served as a screen for foreigners, were said to be fictitious Russians. Such reviews were more a manifestation of an injured national feeling than a reflection of Russia's real economic interests. The echo of such imperial sentiments was clearly audible at the beginning of the 20th century. 203
The Russian Empire in any case did not have serious advantages for effective competition in the field of merchant shipping. Its coastal regions were sparsely populated and, with the exception of the coasts of the White, Caspian and Azov Seas, were poor in fish. The cumulative result of these unfavorable factors was the lack of potential sailors in the country, especially those suitable for long-term navigation, which was additionally hampered by the preservation of serfdom in the country until 1861 204 . Coastal shipping in the Russian Far East was dominated by Koreans and Manchus; in the Black and Azov seas for control over coastal trade, a sharp rivalry unfolded between the Greeks, Turks, Italians and other non-Russian entrepreneurs. During the lucrative summer season, they posed as Russian subjects, often leasing their ships for that period. Russian citizens in order to bypass legislative norms directed against foreign participants in the coastal trade. On the White Sea, the number of sailors has dwindled due to competition from the ever-increasingly labor-intensive timber industry following the granting of a British logging concession in the region.
shortage problem human resources exacerbated geographic difficulties. The northern ports of the country were icebound for 3-7 months a year, and as a result, Russian ships were locked in ports, while foreign ships could deliver goods to Russia on the high seas. The Black Sea coast had few natural harbors, and the sea routes to the ports were so shallow that ship owners could not use large-tonnage ships here. In addition, a large imbalance in the physical volume of exports and imports interfered. In the 1880s - early 1890s. the volume of exports was 3.5-4 times higher than the volume of imports in terms of weight ratio, and therefore ballast was an important item of Russian import statistics 206 .
Yet, despite the rivalry of railways and obstacles to the development of maritime trade, 3/4 of Russian foreign trade turnover at the beginning of the 20th century. carried out by sea. At the same time, only 8% of goods were transported on Russian ships 207 . A different ratio was not to be expected. For the above reasons, Russian shipping could not compete with foreign companies in terms of shipping costs. Outside the country, there was clearly a lack of Russian trading firms that could act as active agents of Russian shipping companies. As a result Russian ships it was often unprofitable to enter foreign ports with a small cargo, since the port dues at times exceeded the proceeds from the sale of goods. In the 1890s in some ports in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Russian government-backed Russian Society of Shipping and Trade (ROPiT) did not receive enough revenue even to pay the consular fee, let alone other duties. In addition, ship brokers in the main Russian ports, acting in the interests of trading companies, although they were obliged to take Russian citizenship for the right to engage in brokerage, were not too sympathetic towards Russian shipping companies.
Major changes in shipping in the second half of the XIX century. occurred in other countries, in particular in the UK. There has been a trend towards the separation of ownership of ships and commercial entrepreneurship. Technological progress, including the use of compound steam engines, has led to an increase in capital investment and increased management requirements in merchant shipping. Supported by laws joint stock companies 1856 and 1862, according to which the practice of joint-stock organization entrepreneurial activity was extended to shipping, the British shipping companies quickly achieved hegemony on the main routes. The shipping business and foreign trade were separated. Alfred Holt, a major Liverpool steamship owner, commented that the city's leading trading houses "will never be able to make their ships profitable, and this is the beginning of the end." trading business» 209 . The Butterfield & Swire trading company, which operated in the Far East and initially combined the shipping business and trade, after 1902 abandoned independent trading operations, concentrating on the transportation of goods within the framework of the China Navigation Company established by it in 1872 210 . As for Russian trade, for the same reasons, the shipbuilding and ship-owning company R. Ropner & Co” (R. Ropner & Co) from Stockton, which was connected with the owners of steamships and bread merchants in Odessa and Berlin “X. Neufeld & Co (H. Neufeld & Co), as well as with shipping agents in London and Odessa, McNabb, Rougier & Co (McNabb, Rougier & Co), was able to insist that management in this area be entirely provided in her order 211 .
With the increase in investment in shipping, economic advantages here were acquired by those countries where capital was relatively cheap and plentiful. In the second half of the XIX century. specialized shipping companies, often British, which dominated Russian foreign trade routes. Among the many similar companies on the Baltic Sea, the following should be mentioned: Bailey & Leetham, K. Norwood & Co (C. Norwood & Co), Brown, Atkinson & Co (Brown, Atkinson & Co), Hornstedt & Gowthorne (Hornstedt & Gawthorne) and especially T. Wilson and Sons" (T. Wilson & Sons) from Hull 212 . The last of these firms also led trading operations at the Black Sea. According to W. Overton, who until 1914 served in the firm "Maknab, Rifle and Co" in Odessa and Novorossiysk, "T. Wilson & Sons was the leading shipping company on the Black Sea. Next in importance were the German-Levantine Company of Hamburg; Royal Hungarian Shipping Company of Fiume; "Helmsing and Grimm" (Helmsing & Grimm) from Riga; "U. Miller & Co” (W. S. Miller & Co from Glasgow; Dall’Orso & Co) from Genoa and Scaramanga Bros. from London.
Perhaps due to the fact that the shallow Black Sea ports excluded the use of large-capacity ships, many firms involved in international trade were more interested in developing their own fleet, the creation of which was cheaper in the Black Sea than in the Baltic. In addition to the Scaramanga brothers mentioned above, other leading grain trading firms on the Black Sea, such as Sechiari, Sifneo and Vagliano, had their own ocean-going ships. Panagiotis Valiano (1814-1902) especially contributed to the development of Greek shipping companies involved in the export trade on the Black Sea. His significant financial resources allowed to lend to Greek shipowners, making it easier for them to replace sailing ships with steam ones, for which he received the title of "the founder of modern Greek shipping" 213 .
Since larger and correspondingly more expensive ships were used on the Baltic Sea, the combination of shipping and trading business was less common here than on the Black Sea. Petersburg firm "U. Miller and Co. (Wm. Miller & Co) was a notable exception. The connection between shipping and trade turned out to be in this case the result of a marriage union. In 1832, William Miller (1809-1887) arrived in St. Petersburg, where he engaged in the herring trade. To this end, he started a small merchant fleet. In 1860, his relative, nee Elizabeth Marshall (Marshall), married Edward Cazalet (Cazalet, 1827-1887) 214 who had trading interests in St. Petersburg. Casaleta became the owner of a third of the shares in Miller's company, and he, in turn, received a share of the capital in the Casaleta company. The resulting shipping, commercial and industrial concern continued to operate in Russia until 1917. 215
Turning now to the problem of the impact of government policy on the development of the Russian merchant fleet, we note that the state in Russia, as in other European countries of the second half of the 19th century, sought to support merchant shipping. The country's loss of freight from shipping cargo on foreign ships and the keenly felt need for its own merchant fleet as a trump card in international trade negotiations were debated at many important meetings, in which, nevertheless, strategic motives prevailed over commercial ones. In the course of the discussions, the desire to strengthen the country's maritime power 216 obviously prevailed.
These motives dominated the formation and subsidization of Russian shipping companies. In 1872 it was created Imperial Society to assist Russian merchant shipping. Judging by its annual reports and statements in the press of its active members, such as Prince. D. N. Dolgorukov, A. K. von Meck, M. K. Sidorov, and, above all, its founder, a Latvian by origin, H. M. Valdemar 217 , this society took on the mission of a fighter for the needs of the Russian merchant fleet .
For example, reports about the terrible state of nautical schools and port facilities left a very gloomy impression on the reader 218 .
For its part, the government encouraged the development of the domestic merchant fleet, granting the right of coastal navigation only to Russian citizens and providing them with cash subsidies. This assistance was very generous and included the reimbursement of postal expenses, subsidies for the expansion of operations and the construction of new ships, duty-free imports on foreign steamships (since 1898) and an advantage in the transport of official cargo 219 . In addition, since 1876, Russian steamships plying between the ports of European Russia, India and the Far East were reimbursed for the duties levied on them during the passage of the Suez Canal. This amount was up to 1 million rubles per year. 220
The amount of government support for the Russian merchant fleet has increased over time. There is no doubt, however, that it was insufficient to significantly increase the share of export-import goods transported on Russian ships. In the 1880s Russian shipowners complained that the level of government subsidies per registered ton did not exceed 3.8 rubles, while the corresponding figure in France, Japan and Italy was 19, 15 and 9 rubles. In the UK, it should be added, it was only 0.9 rubles. 221 At the beginning of the 20th century. ROPiT leaders complained that in terms of the level of government subsidies received, their society was inferior to competitors from Germany, Austria, France and Japan 222 .
Despite these criticisms, the Russian government was still able to significantly increase the domestic merchant fleet and modernize it. In 1897, the Russian steam merchant fleet was still inferior in displacement to the sailing fleet, but by 1913 more than 2/3 of the displacement was accounted for by steamships and motor ships, and the total carrying capacity of the Russian merchant fleet had grown quite significantly (see table 15). However, in comparison with other maritime powers, successes have so far been small. At the beginning of the XX century. about 92% of Russian maritime cargo transportation was carried out on foreign courts, this indicator was lower only at the end of the 18th century. 223
As for individual Russian companies, the government supported the most significant of them more for the sake of increasing Russian maritime power than for economic reasons. Under the terms of the Paris Peace Treaty of 1856, the Black Sea was declared neutral. Neither Russia nor Turkey were allowed to have naval forces here. Russian government, seeking to maintain a maritime presence in the Black Sea, authorized the creation of the Russian Society of Shipping and Trade. His merchant ships, as the ruling circles of the empire believed, if necessary, could be quickly converted into naval vessels.
Table 15
Russian registered merchant fleet, 1859-1913
* The reasons for such sharp changes in statistical indicators compared to the previous period are not given in the relevant publications.
Source: Mitchell B.R. European Historical Statistics. London, 1975. Table G4. Data missing in this publication for 1906 were extracted from the following edition: Nos A.E. Russian Merchant Fleet in 1906 // Proceedings of the Imperial Society for the Promotion of Russian Merchant Shipping. 1907-1908. No. 66. P. 226.
N.A. Novoselsky, who had experience in organizing steam navigation along the Volga, was appointed the head of the company, and a member of the board in 1864-1868. was Edward Cazalet, co-owner of the trading firms A. Casalet & Co" and "W. Miller & Co" in St. Petersburg. The new company received a government subsidy of 2 million rubles. per year, which subsequently decreased until it was finally abolished in 1876. After a discouraging start, when the company's shares fell in price from 300 (par value) to 125 rubles, then, under the new composition of the administration, things improved, and the exchange rate shares exceeded 2.5 par 225 .
In addition to coastal trade, ROPiT has focused on the Eastern Mediterranean region, delivering agricultural products from Southern Russia to the ports of Haifa, Beirut and Port Said. The company was also engaged in the transportation of goods from the ports of China and India 226 . Y. Janson noted that in the 1860s. ROPiT ships were little involved in the export trade, although the company was engaged in the commission sale of flour in such Mediterranean ports as Alexandria and Beirut. ROPiT continued to concentrate activity on short flights to the Eastern Mediterranean, but in the early 1900s. opened a new line between Odessa and Bassor in southern Iran, intending through its agents to supply Russian goods to the local market 227 . For these purposes, the society was granted a government subsidy 228 . And yet, despite the fact that ROPiT sent its ships to India and China, and the pace of Russia's economic development was growing rapidly, it was only a short time achieved relative commercial success 229 .
From the point of view of increasing naval power, ROPiT did not fulfill the task assigned to it. The development of naval artillery in the 1870s put an end to the old practice of converting merchant ships into warships. To the disappointment of the Imperial Society for the Promotion of Russian Merchant Shipping, during the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878. ROPiT was able to offer the Russian navy only the worst of its steamships, which were no longer suitable for commerce, since they did not meet the conditions of trade on the Black Sea, and did not provide "a single warship, captain or sailor" 230 .
The creation of the ROPiT took place largely at the initiative of the government, which was concerned about maintaining a naval presence in the Black Sea. But, despite the failure of plans to strengthen the combat power of the fleet, which became obvious during the years of the Russian-Turkish war, new project, pursuing the same goal as the creation of ROPiT. The essential difference was that the idea of creating the so-called Volunteer Fleet came from Russian private business circles. At the end of the 1870s. the tea trading company Ponomarev and Co, operating in Hankou (China), intended to establish its own shipping company as a result, as it was said in one of the company's circulars, "the arbitrariness of the Anglo-Chinese Shipping Company", which operated on the lines of Hankou-Shanghai-Tianjing and Fuchou -Shanghai-Tianjin and did not serve a number of tea suppliers for Russia. From Ponomarev's point of view, only a Russian shipping company could free domestic Chinese tea merchants from their "painful dependence" on foreign shipping firms 231 .
At the same time, the Imperial Society for the Promotion of Russian Merchant Shipping, referring to the weakness of Russia's position on the Black Sea, which became a serious obstacle during the Russian-Turkish war of 1877-1878, came up with the idea of creating a fleet of high-speed steam ships, which would become the core of the domestic merchant fleet in peacetime 232 . In the event of war, these ships could be converted into warships 233 . The project was approved by the government in April 1878 in the face of an imminent military clash with Great Britain. The importance of this undertaking for the Russian ruling circles is revealed by the fact that the heir to the throne, the future Emperor Alexander III, was elected chairman of the Committee for the Arrangement of the Volunteer Fleet, and control over the current activities of the company was entrusted to one of the most influential people in Russia, K. P. Pobedonostsev, who took post of vice-chairman of the Committee 234 . The funds necessary for the implementation of the project were collected with the assistance of a number of prominent figures of that era. The subscription to the company's shares was carried out in Moscow under the control of the Governor-General Prince. V. M. Dolgorukov, who attracted wealthy entrepreneurs to participate in the creation of the society and thereby provided the capital of the enterprise 235 .
By September 1878, 3 million rubles had been collected, and this amount was enough to buy three ships. The ships were in 1880-1881. assigned to the Pacific squadron of Admiral S. S. Lesovsky, but in the future the fleet became more and more commercial in nature. In 1886, according to the highest approved "Temporary Regulations on the Voluntary Fleet", the purpose of the company was officially declared the transportation of mail, goods and passengers between Odessa and the ports of the Far East, as well as points along the route of ships 237 .
The management of the Voluntary Fleet was in the hands of a special Committee (board), which included two representatives from the Naval Ministry and one from the Ministry of Finance, and the Committee itself was directly subordinate to the head of the maritime department 238 . The committee immediately tried to develop commercial activity, by making contact with the aforementioned tea trading company Ponomarev and Co. A dispatch was sent to her with a proposal to use the ships of the Volunteer Fleet until the company acquired its own steamers. Similar proposals were also made to Moscow tea trading firms to use the Volunteer Fleet to deliver their goods.
This initiative met with a sympathetic reception from the tea merchants. In subsequent negotiations, Pyatakov, co-owner trading house"Pyatakov, Molchanov and Co" (Hankou), as a result of which his company assumed the function of the representative of the Voluntary Fleet in the ports of Hankou and Fuzhou 239 . Another tea trading company, Shcherbachev, Skokov and Co, acted as an agent of the Volunteer Fleet in Singapore and Colombo, while in Moscow this mission was carried out by the Zenzinov brothers' tea trading company 240 .
Close contacts between this semi-governmental company and the tea merchants were expressed in annual meetings with the participation of members of the Committee and representatives of Moscow business circles. Data on the growing income of the Volunteer Fleet from the transportation of tea cargoes reveal the reasons for such a caring attitude of the company's management towards tea merchants. The volume of tea cargo increased from 4,256 tons in 1886 to 9,249 tons in 1887, 13,840 tons in 1888, and 15,852 tons in 1889. per pood in the 1880s. up to 48 kop. per pood in 1890, then up to 60 kopecks. in the late 1890s and decreased to 35 kopecks. at the beginning of the 20th century, the income of the Voluntary Fleet at the end of the 19th century. was about 1 million rubles. per year 242 . Apparently, the transportation of tea brought almost half of the company's income from sea freight 243 , and it is no less important that tea ensured the loading of the ships of the Volunteer Fleet on their way back from the ports of the Far East, since otherwise they would have to return with virtually empty holds 244 . The opening of the Trans-Siberian Railway in 1903 reduced the importance of the Volunteer Fleet in the field of postal and passenger transportation, so that without income from sea freight tea freight, the company would have been forced to depend entirely on state subsidies and official cargo transportation. Such a situation, of course, could not suit the Russian government.
In any case, the authorities had to subsidize private shipping companies. Russian companies at the Black Sea. Trading house, established in 1880 by the brothers of Prince. Yuri and Feofil Gagarin, who intended to develop a passenger and cargo connection between Odessa and the Romanian and Bulgarian ports at the mouth of the Danube, also received government support. 1881 and 1882 were relatively successful, prompting the brothers to expand the operations of the trading house. In 1883 they founded the Black Sea-Danube Shipping Company. So that the new enterprise could compete with the Austrian Danube Shipping Company, in 1884 the brainchild of Prince. The Gagarins were granted an annual government subsidy of 153 thousand rubles, as well as other privileges. Unfortunately, in the late 1880s. the company lost one of its steamships, and the acquisition of a new one was delayed, resulting in large losses 245 . The government subsidy was used even by the shipping company "Caucasus and Mercury", which operated on a profitable basis for freight traffic Caspian Sea. Admittedly, the annual state subsidy in the amount of at least 400 thousand rubles. in the early 1880s. was compensated by society to the government in the form of additional tonnage for postal and official cargo shipments 246 .
The situation in the Baltic was little better, since the efforts of the Latvians, Estonians and Finns could only relatively compensate for the weak presence of Russian shipping companies in the region. At the beginning of the XX century. The shipping company of the Lassman brothers, which owned three steamships (Irkutsk, Kurgan and Vologda), carried out regular flights between Riga, Vindava, St. Petersburg and London 247 .
In addition to two semi-state merchant shipping companies, ROPiT and Voluntary Fleet, at the beginning of the 20th century. only two more significant Russian enterprises in the field of water transport can be named: the Russian East-Asian Shipping Company and the Northern Shipping Company (see Table 14). However, the first was, in fact, a Danish company that raised the Russian flag on its ships, and the second was subsidized by the Hamburg-America shipping company, which similarly counted on a part of the profits from trading under the Russian flag 248 .
On the eve of the First World War, the managing director of the agency of Maknab, Ruzhier and Co. in Novorossiysk compiled a list of shipping companies on the Black and Azov Seas (the list does not include ROPiT and Volunteer Fleet), which reflects the significant participation of foreign-born entrepreneurs in the shipping business of the region (see .table 16).
Table 16
Russian shipping companies operating on the Black and Azov Seas, 1913-1914
The Merchant Marine is a collection of ships with personnel currently engaged in commercial activities.
The purpose of the merchant marine
The department is responsible for the following tasks:
- observance of peace and maintenance of military order;
- protection of territorial maritime borders;
- protection of national interests of citizens.
In addition to the main ones listed above, there are secondary, but no less important tasks that the merchant fleet is involved in.
During the existence of the structure, the cargo has played important role in the development of the economic condition of the country, being the financial backbone of the state.
The fleet is the backbone of shipping. Today, the merchant fleet includes not only vessels and ships of long-distance voyage, but also small water transport. Small vessels are engaged in servicing the sea coast and water area.
What boats are part of the merchant fleet
Except big and small Vehicle, the country's merchant fleet also includes:
- organizations and enterprises engaged in repair and towing works;
- operational management bodies;
- marine insurance agencies;
- centers Maintenance sea bunkers, shipyards, moorings.
The merchant marine is a subdivision, for the most part belonging to private structures. Thus, their activities are carried out independently of the leadership of the head of state. But there are cases when the head of the republic interferes in the activities of the merchant fleet.
How to recognize a merchant ship
A floating facility automatically acquires the status of an official maritime transport if the country's national flag is displayed on it. This is a symbol of the status of a sea vessel.
The state flag hoisted on the ship implies that the ship is officially registered in the register of marine navigation facilities, has a certificate confirming this and a full package of ship documents.
Due to the national status, the ship receives privileges in the form of diplomatic support not only of the ruling state, but also of neighboring friendly countries. The government has the full right to dispose of the private ships of the merchant fleet in case of emergency.
The Merchant Marine is a subdivision whose management and operation are subject to state regulations.
