Latest news with #Vark
TimesLIVE
15-05-2025
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
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.'
Straits Times
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Estonia says Russia sent military jet after bid to detain 'shadow fleet' tanker
Estonia says Russia sent military jet after bid to detain 'shadow fleet' tanker TALLINN - Estonia's foreign minister said on Thursday Russia sent a military jet as his country's navy tried to detain a Russia-bound oil tanker under sanction by Britain, accusing it of sailing illegally without a flag. After the vessel, Jaguar, placed on Britain's sanctions list last Friday, refused to cooperate with an attempt to board it, the Estonian Navy said it was escorted to Russian waters. "The Russian Federation sent a fighter jet to check the situation, and this fighter jet violated NATO territory for close to one minute," Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told reporters in the Turkish city of Antalya. "We need to understand that Russia has officially tried and connected itself to the Russian 'shadow fleet'," he said, speaking ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. "(The) Russian Federation is ready to protect the 'shadow fleet'... The situation is really serious". The Jaguar is one of more than 100 ships in Russia's "shadow fleet", a term Western countries use for ships they accuse Moscow of deploying to avoid international sanctions, typically unregulated and uninsured by regular Western organisations. Military jets from a NATO policing mission based in the Baltic states took off to inspect the Russian vessel, said the minister, who earlier called on X for Russia to "face tougher, faster sanctions" in response. The Russian foreign ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Britain has said its sanctions restricting or prohibiting movement and access of the 'shadow fleet' to some of its ports will constrain Russian President Vladimir Putin's war effort. "FOLLOW MY INSTRUCTIONS" The ship was near Naissaar Island, off Tallinn, when the Estonian Navy communicated with it by radio at 1530 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 cooperation and continued its journey toward Russia ... given the vessel's lack of nationality, the use of force, including boarding the vessel, was deemed unnecessary." An Estonian patrol escorted the Jaguar until it reached Russian waters, Vark added. The Estonian defence ministry declined to comment. On Thursday, the Jaguar was anchored near the Russian port of Primorsk, Marine Traffic data showed. It was listed there under the flag of the central African nation of Gabon. Vark was responding to a Reuters request for comment on a recording on X purporting to show the boarding attempt, but which could not be independently verified. Filmed from a bridge of a tanker whose IMO identification number matches that of the Jaguar, the video shows a navy patrol boat, a helicopter and a patrol aircraft hovering nearby. "This is Estonian warship ... follow my instructions, alter your course to 105 immediately," says a voice on the radio. In Russian, a voice says off-camera, "We are met by helicopters, they demand we go on anchor." A military jet, which Estonia does not operate, is also glimpsed flying nearby. Vark did not reply to a query if the incident was connected to Tuesday's alleged breach of Estonian airspace by a Russian Su-35 military jet that drew a protest from Estonia. On X, Margarita Simonyan, head of Russia's state media outlet RT, who posted the video, said the jet was a Russian Su-35, sent to prevent the vessel's seizure. In an incident on April 11, Estonia detained and boarded a Russia-bound oil tanker, Kiwala, accusing it of sailing without a valid country flag. The tanker cooperated, and was released two weeks later. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
15-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Estonia says Russia sent military jet after bid to detain 'shadow fleet' tanker
TALLINN (Reuters) -Estonia's foreign minister said on Thursday Russia sent a military jet as his country's navy tried to detain a Russia-bound oil tanker under sanction by Britain, accusing it of sailing illegally without a flag. After the vessel, Jaguar, placed on Britain's sanctions list last Friday, refused to cooperate with an attempt to board it, the Estonian Navy said it was escorted to Russian waters. "The Russian Federation sent a fighter jet to check the situation, and this fighter jet violated NATO territory for close to one minute," Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna told reporters in the Turkish city of Antalya. "We need to understand that Russia has officially tried and connected itself to the Russian 'shadow fleet'," he said, speaking ahead of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. "(The) Russian Federation is ready to protect the 'shadow fleet'... The situation is really serious". The Jaguar is one of more than 100 ships in Russia's "shadow fleet", a term Western countries use for ships they accuse Moscow of deploying to avoid international sanctions, typically unregulated and uninsured by regular Western organisations. Military jets from a NATO policing mission based in the Baltic states took off to inspect the Russian vessel, said the minister, who earlier called on X for Russia to "face tougher, faster sanctions" in response. The Russian foreign ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Britain has said its sanctions restricting or prohibiting movement and access of the 'shadow fleet' to some of its ports will constrain Russian President Vladimir Putin's war effort. "FOLLOW MY INSTRUCTIONS" The ship was near Naissaar Island, off Tallinn, when the Estonian Navy communicated with it by radio at 1530 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 cooperation and continued its journey toward Russia ... given the vessel's lack of nationality, the use of force, including boarding the vessel, was deemed unnecessary." An Estonian patrol escorted the Jaguar until it reached Russian waters, Vark added. The Estonian defence ministry declined to comment. On Thursday, the Jaguar was anchored near the Russian port of Primorsk, Marine Traffic data showed. It was listed there under the flag of the central African nation of Gabon. Vark was responding to a Reuters request for comment on a recording on X purporting to show the boarding attempt, but which could not be independently verified. Filmed from a bridge of a tanker whose IMO identification number matches that of the Jaguar, the video shows a navy patrol boat, a helicopter and a patrol aircraft hovering nearby. "This is Estonian warship ... follow my instructions, alter your course to 105 immediately," says a voice on the radio. In Russian, a voice says off-camera, "We are met by helicopters, they demand we go on anchor." A military jet, which Estonia does not operate, is also glimpsed flying nearby. Vark did not reply to a query if the incident was connected to Tuesday's alleged breach of Estonian airspace by a Russian Su-35 military jet that drew a protest from Estonia. On X, Margarita Simonyan, head of Russia's state media outlet RT, who posted the video, said the jet was a Russian Su-35, sent to prevent the vessel's seizure. In an incident on April 11, Estonia detained and boarded a Russia-bound oil tanker, Kiwala, accusing it of sailing without a valid country flag. The tanker cooperated, and was released two weeks later. (Additional Reporting by Sabine Siebold in Antalya and Gwladys Fouche in Oslo; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)
Metro
15-05-2025
- Metro
Russia and Nato just minutes from international incident over Baltic Sea tanker
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video War now feels dangerously close on Nato's eastern flank after a Russian fighter jet tore into Estonia's airspace. It was a brief violation – lasting for about a minute – but it was enough to trigger an emergency alarm in the Baltic Sea. It happened after the Estonian Navy said it attempted to detain a Russia-bound oil tanker, while it was navigating in international waters. The vessel, Jaguar, was sanctioned by Britain last Friday, amid accusations it is one of about 100 in Russia's 'shadow fleet' – deployed by the Kremlin to avoid international sanctions. The tanker was near Naissaar Island, off Tallinn, when the Estonian Navy communicated with it by radio at 3.30pm UK time on Tuesday. Estonian authorities deployed an AgustaWestland AW139 helicopter, an M28 Skytruck aircraft, and the EML Raju patrol boat to intercept it. They demanded that Jaguar's crew change course, but they refused to comply. It was then that Russian forces scrambled a Su-35 fighter plane to provide cover for the tanker. Public broadcaster ERR reported on Wednesday that the Russian aircraft's transponders had been switched off and no flight plan had been filed. Estonian Navy commander Ivo Vark said that forces 'had an obligation to verify the vessel's documents and legal status as it was sailing 'without a nationality'. He added: The vessel denied cooperation and continued its journey toward Russia… 'Given the vessel's lack of nationality, the use of force, including boarding the vessel, was deemed unnecessary.' An Estonian patrol then escorted the Jaguar until it eventually reached Russian waters, Vark added. Footage filmed from a bridge of a tanker whose IMO identification number matches that of the Jaguar shows a navy patrol boat, a helicopter and a patrol aircraft hovering nearby. A voice on a radio is heard in the background: 'This is Estonian warship … follow my instructions, alter your course to 105 immediately.' In Russian, a voice says off-camera, is heard saying: 'We are met by helicopters, they demand we go on anchor.' More Trending A military jet, which Estonia does not operate, is also glimpsed flying nearby. Margus Tsahkna, Estonian foreign minister, stressed this is a 'very serious and regrettable incident, which is completely unacceptable.' He said on X: 'Yesterday another incident with Russia's shadow fleet in the Gulf of Finland proved that we must act. 'With the info op that followed Russia has clearly tied itself to the shadow fleet – a threat that must face tougher, faster sanctions.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Donald Trump plays YMCA on stage while posing for photos with Mohammed bin Salman MORE: Putin calls Western leaders 'morons' over Ukraine ceasefire talks ultimatum MORE: Metro goes onboard UK's 'Fighting Clan' warship tasked with deterring Putin's subs
RTÉ News
15-05-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Estonia attempts to detain one of Russia's 'shadow fleet' in Baltic Sea
The Estonian navy has attempted to detain a Russia-bound oil tanker under sanction by the UK, saying that it sailed illegally without a flag. But it did not board the vessel when it refused to cooperate, the navy added, instead escorting it to Russian waters. The vessel, Jaguar, which the UK added to its sanctions list last Friday, is one of about 100 in Russia's "shadow fleet", a term that Western countries use for ships they accuse Moscow of deploying to avoid international sanctions. They are typically not regulated or insured by conventional organisations in the west. The ship was near Naissaar Island, off the Estonian capital Tallinn, when the navy communicated with it by radio on Tuesday afternoon, Commander Ivo Vark said. As it was sailing "without a nationality", Estonia "had an obligation to verify the vessel's documents and legal status", he added. "The vessel denied cooperation and continued its journey toward Russia ... given the vessel's lack of nationality, the use of force, including boarding the vessel, was deemed unnecessary." An Estonian patrol escorted the Jaguar until it reached Russian waters, Commander Vark added. On X, Estonia's foreign minister said that Russia "must face tougher, faster sanctions" in response. "With the info op that followed, Russia has clearly tied itself to the shadow fleet," Margus Tsahkna wrote. The Estonian defence ministry declined to comment. Yesterday another incident with Russia's shadow fleet in the Gulf of Finland proved that we must act. With the info op that followed Russia has clearly tied itself to the shadow fleet - a threat that must face tougher, faster sanctions. 🇪🇪 will defend our & Allies' security. — Margus Tsahkna (@Tsahkna) May 14, 2025 Yesterday, the Jaguar was anchored near the Russian port of Primorsk, Marine Traffic data showed. It was listed there under the flag of the central African nation of Gabon. Commander Vark was responding to a request for comment on a recording on X appearing to show the boarding attempt which could not be independently verified. Filmed from a bridge of a tanker whose International Maritime Organization identification number matches that of the Jaguar, the video shows a navy patrol boat, a helicopter and a patrol aircraft hovering nearby. "This is Estonian warship ... follow my instructions, alter your course to 105 immediately," says a voice on the radio. In Russian, a voice says off-camera: "We are met by helicopters, they demand we go on anchor." A military jet, which Estonia does not operate, is also seen flying nearby. Commander Vark did not reply to a query if the incident was connected to Tuesday's alleged breach of Estonian airspace by a Russian military jet that drew a protest from Estonia. On X, head of Russia's state media outlet RT Margarita Simonyan, who posted the video, said the jet was a RussianSu-35, sent to prevent the vessel's seizure. In an incident on 11 April, Estonia detained and boarded a Russia-bound oil tanker, Kiwala, accusing it of sailing without a valid country flag.
