An oil tanker rescued in the Baltic Sea by Germany; Berlin accuses Moscow of “endangering” European security
An oil tanker carrying 99,000 tonnes of fuel was rescued in the Baltic Sea on Friday by German authorities. Berlin and Greenpeace accuse him of being part of the “Russian ghost fleet” armed by Moscow to export its oil despite sanctions.
Declared “in distress”the tanker eventwhich is 274 meters long and flies the Panamanian flag, drifted for a time on Friday “at low speed, unable to maneuver, in the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea, north of Rügen”the German maritime emergency command center said in a statement.
The latter sent two ships, including a tugboat, to its rescue, while other tugboats “were on their way”. At the beginning of the afternoon, the first tug “was able to establish a towing connection” so that the ship is “held in position”ensures naval authority.
In a statement, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock accused Russia of “endanger” European security “not only with its war of aggression against Ukraine (…) more ” also with dilapidated tankers. “By nefarious use of a fleet of rusting tankers, [Vladimir] Putin not only circumvents the sanctions, but also puts up with the fact that tourism on the Baltic Sea is brought to a halt.she lamented. She recalled that the EU had already sanctioned nearly 80 vessels designated as part of the “Russian ghost fleet”.
According to Greenpeace, theeventwhich was heading towards Egypt, had already been spotted for oil convoys “particularly dangerous” and his “technical defects”. It appears in his list of 192 “the most dangerous tankers”. “Ships of the Russian Ghost Fleet threaten the coasts of the Baltic Sea every day”estimates Thilo Maack, marine biologist from Greenpeace cited by the NGO.
