Russia on Sunday detained an oil tanker after it departed the Estonian port of Sillamäe on a pre-agreed route, the Transport Administration reported. The incident comes several days after Estonia tried to stop a Russian shadow fleet vessel.
The Liberian-flagged Green Admire tanker is owned by Greek company Aegean Shipping. It left the Port of Sillamäe in eastern Estonia carrying a cargo of shale oil, destined for Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
The vessel had been sailing along an agreed route through Russian waters.
The Transport Administration told ERR that such an incident had never occurred before.
Ships traveling to and from Sillamäe will now be directed to stay in Estonian territorial waters, the agency said in a statement.
Ships leaving Sillamäe usually travel through Russian Federation territorial waters as doing so is safer for larger vessels than navigating shoals which can be found in Estonian waters.
This safe navigation route does not follow any national borders and had been agreed upon between Russia, Estonia, and Finland.
The agency’s vessel traffic management department monitors ship traffic in Estonian territorial waters.
The incident follows an attempt this week by the Estonian Navy to stop an unflagged tanker, part of Russia’s shadow fleet, sailing through Estonian waters. The ship did not stop and Russia sent a fighter jet to escort the tanker, violating Estonia’s airspace in the process.
Another shadow fleet tanker, the “Kiwala,” was impounded by Estonian authorities for a little over two weeks in April for sailing without a flag.
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