Russia has threatened to retaliate if the EU moves forward with new proposals to seize more Moscow-linked oil tankers in the Baltic Sea.
Alexei Zhuravlev - Deputy Chairman of the Defense Committee of the Russian Parliament - informed on February 10, "any attack on our ships can be considered an attack on Russian territory, even if the ship flies a foreign flag."
Any move to seize the Russian tanker would prompt retaliatory measures from Moscow, including boarding Western ships in the Baltic region, as well as taking certain measures by the Russian Baltic Fleet, Zhuravlev stressed.
The comments come after Politico reported that Finland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia are considering new legal mechanisms to seize more ships in Russia’s shadow fleet, which includes old vessels with hidden ownership and unclear insurance.
The EU proposal gained new momentum after Finland seized a Russian shadow fleet vessel last December on suspicion of sabotaging some Baltic Sea cables.
Ukraine also welcomed the EU proposal. Earlier this week, Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, said the new initiatives were important and would impact Russia’s overall efforts in its military campaign in Ukraine.
