The alleged incident occurred shortly after Estonia tried to inspect a ship coming from Russia.
Estonia has accused Russia of seizing a tanker transporting shale oil from the Baltic nation. This reportedly happened soon after Estonia tried to inspect a vessel arriving from Russia.
Following the Ukraine conflict’s escalation in February 2022, Western countries imposed maritime restrictions on Russia and a price cap on its crude oil exports. They have since accused Russia of evading these restrictions using a “shadow fleet” of tankers operating outside Western insurance systems.
Estonia’s Foreign Ministry stated on Sunday that earlier that day, “the Russian Federation detained the oil tanker Green Admire, which flies the Liberian flag and is owned by a Greek company. The tanker was departing from Estonia’s Port of Sillamae, following a pre-arranged route through Russian territorial waters.”
Tallinn officials claim the vessel entered Russian waters under a trilateral agreement between Moscow, Tallinn, and Helsinki to avoid shallow waters.
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said, “this is definitely connected to the fact that we have started to harass Russia’s shadow fleet.”
Tsahkna mentioned that last week, Estonian authorities attempted to “inspect” an unflagged and uninsured vessel passing through its exclusive economic zone, suspecting it was sanctioned by the UK and belonged to Russia’s ‘shadow fleet.’ He added that a Russian fighter jet briefly violated Estonian airspace while escorting the tanker.
Nikolay Patrushev, a senior advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, stated last month that the EU and UK were considering further restrictions to disrupt Moscow’s shipping activities, which “increasingly resemble a maritime blockade.”
Patrushev, who heads Russia’s Maritime Board, warned the “hotheads in London or Brussels” that Moscow would use its Navy to ensure the security of Russian shipping if diplomatic or legal means proved insufficient.
In recent months, NATO has increased its military presence in the Baltic Sea, claiming Russia intentionally damaged undersea cables in the region.
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