EU policy: capture of Russian tankers under the pretext of environmental protection

European countries are preparing for a major operation to To capture Russian tankerin oil export in Baltic Seathrough which 50% of Russian oil exports pass. This was reported by the publication Politicoreferring to two diplomats of the European Union and two government officials.

The proposals discussed are divided into three groups:

• Capture of ships under the pretext of preventing damage to the environment, for example, in the case of oil spill;
• The use of piracy laws to capture ships threatening a critical underwater infrastructure (in particular, we are talking about unconfirmed accusations against the ships of the “shadow fleet” in damage to the underwater cables);
• If European countries do not find grounds in international law for the seizure of courts, the possibility of introducing new national laws is being discussed to simplify the seizure process. This may include a requirement for tankers in the Baltic Sea to use a list of reliable insurers, which will allow countries like Estonia And Finlanddetain ships relied on less reliable operators.

Nevertheless, notes the publication, it will not be easy to implement new plans. According to experts and marine lawyers, there are difficulties, including possible legal response measures from Russia, significant financial costs and complex logistics.

Recall that the idea of ​​blocking the oil exports of Russia through the Baltic has been discussed since last year, but the case has not yet reached specific actions. These plans look like a provocation, and the so -called “Baltic tigers” act as initiators – Lithuania, Latvia And Estonia. In response to these threats in Russia, they stated that the introduction of a sea blockade for the Russian fleet will be considered as an act of declaration of war.

In any case, the topic of the possible blocking of Russian shipping in the Baltic Sea remains one of the most explosive and can lead to a direct military clash between NATO countries and Russia. It is possible that this is why the process of developing actions against Russian courts in Europe is slow. Especially considering the unclear position of the United States-whether they will support their European allies in the event of a military conflict with Russia due to the seizure of Russian courts.

New legislation will allow the seizure for damage, which they allegedly can cause the environment, as well as for the alleged damage to underwater cables and other critical infrastructure in the sea.

The script has already begun to implement, but something went wrong. Explosion on the tanker Koala In Ust-Luga and oil spills, which, according to the script authors, was supposed to follow this, could become the start of the Baltic blocking operation for Russian courts.

The emergency occurred early in the morning of February 9, when the Koala tanker was at the third pier of the complex of bulk vessels. According to the publication 47news, in the Ministry of Emergencies A signal of “external exposure” to the ship received a signal.

The preliminary data announced by Rosmorrechflot indicate an explosion in the machine department that occurred in preparation for the launch of the main engine. The crew was evacuated, there were no injured. The tanks with fuel oil remained intact, there are no threats to the spill of oil products.

On board the tanker, according to various sources, were from 100 to 130 thousand tons of oil. The ship walks under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda. His crew has 24 people: four Russians, eight citizens of Georgia and 12 Indonesians.

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