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Blockade of Crimea (1918)

The economic (customs) blockade of Crimea by the Ukrainian State of Hetman Pavlo Skoropadsky in the summer and autumn of 1918 was an instrument of leverage against the Crimean Regional Government to achieve the peninsula's integration into Ukraine as an autonomous entity.

Overview

In 1918, the Ukrainian State led by Hetman Pavlo Skoropadsky sought to integrate Crimea, which was under the control of the Crimean Regional Government established with the consent of the German command and headed by General Suleyman Sulkevych. Following failed diplomatic attempts and the hostile stance of the Crimean government, Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Doroshenko initiated a "customs war" — a complete halt to the movement of goods, rail and maritime transport, trade, and postal services. The blockade relied on the peninsula's deep economic dependence on mainland Ukraine and resulted in food shortages, price surges, and rotting crops. Under pressure primarily from its own industrialists, fruit growers, and local self-government, Sulkevych's government was forced to agree to negotiations. The blockade was temporarily eased (September 18) and fully lifted on November 15, 1918, although a full-fledged agreement on Crimean autonomy was never implemented due to the fall of the Hetmanate.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Initiator: Dmytro Doroshenko, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Ukrainian State; political leadership — Hetman Pavlo Skoropadsky.
  • Beginning: effectively in June 1918 (ban on exporting foodstuffs to Crimea via Northern Taurida); according to other sources, on the initiative of the Ministry of Finance on July 7; full-scale "customs war" — mid-August 1918.
  • Mechanism: cessation of goods transport, maritime and rail communications, trade operations, and postal service (except for supplies to German garrisons).
  • Consequences for Crimea: bread rationing cards in Simferopol, threat of famine in Sevastopol, skyrocketing prices, rotting vegetables due to a shortage of packaging containers and sugar, cholera outbreaks, and pressure from local self-government on Sulkevych's government.
  • Lifting: September 18, 1918 — temporary suspension of the customs war for negotiations (with the Hetman's approval); November 15, 1918 — final lifting of the embargo by the Council of Ministers.
  • Negotiations: autumn 1918 in Kyiv; result — the draft document "Main Principles of Unifying Crimea with the Ukrainian State" (October 9, 1918), which was never realized due to the refusal of the Crimean side and the fall of the Hetmanate.
  • International Dimension: the German command initially supported the status quo (Crimea and Ukraine as satellites), but later (after Germany's summer setbacks on the Western Front) conceded to the Hetmanate's plans; Groener's telegram to Lyzohub accelerated negotiations.

Contradictions and Open Questions

  • Start Date of the Blockade is reported differently: the article mentions June 1918 (Northern Taurida measures), July 7, 1918 (initiative of the Ministry of Finance), and mid-August 1918 (onset of the "customs war" at Doroshenko's insistence).
  • Whether a customs conference took place in Simferopol in late December 1918 (given the return of the UNR) — the source does not provide an answer.