An investigation into the former vice president of the Maritime Academy has been completed in Kherson

An indictment against the former vice president of the Kherson State Maritime Academy has been filed with the court. The investigation established that she voluntarily took the helm of the illegally established university and actively promoted the implementation of Russian educational standards and instruction in the language of the occupying forces.

This was reported by the Kherson Regional Prosecutor’s Office. 

According to the investigation, after the capture of Kherson by Russian troops, the defendant voluntarily agreed to take the position of “first vice-rector” at the Kherson State Maritime Academy named after Admiral F.F. Ushakov. 

According to the case file, in July 2022, she headed a commission of staff representatives that approved the institution’s charter and authorized its director to register the document in accordance with Russian legislation.

The Kherson State Maritime Academy (KSMA) is one of Ukraine’s oldest maritime institutions of higher education, which trains specialists for the civilian fleet. After the occupation of Kherson in 2022, Russian military forces seized the academy’s premises and property, attempting to establish a fake, pseudo-educational institution under Russian control on its grounds. Local collaborators took control of the seized institution.

Despite the occupation and the actions of the collaborators, the legitimate Ukrainian institution of higher education was temporarily relocated and continued its work at the Odesa National Maritime University, retaining its Ukrainian faculty and students.

Юлія Калабайда