Estonian navy 'tried to detain one of Russian shadow fleet' in Baltic Sea
The Estonian Navy said it attempted on Tuesday to detain a Russia-bound oil tanker under sanction by Britain, saying it sailed illegally without a flag — but did not board it when it refused to co-operate, instead escorting it to Russian waters.
The vessel, Jaguar, which Britain added to its sanctions list last Friday, is one of about 100 in Russia's 'shadow fleet', a term Western countries use for ships they accuse Moscow of deploying to avoid international sanctions.
They are typically not regulated or insured by conventional Western organisations.
The ship was near Naissaar Island, off Tallinn, when the Estonian Navy communicated with it by radio at 3.30pm GMT on Tuesday, Commander Ivo Vark told Reuters in an email message.
As it was sailing 'without a nationality', Estonia 'had an obligation to verify the vessel's documents and legal status', Vark said on Wednesday.
'The vessel denied co-operation and continued its journey towards Russia ... given the vessel's lack of nationality, the use of force, including boarding the vessel, was deemed unnecessary.'
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