If Spain coordinated the crew rescue operations, Russia quickly took control of the ship sunk in the Mediterranean. Questions still remain about the contents of the cargo.
The cargo ship Ursa Major sank in the Mediterranean, south of the Spanish city of Cartagena, after being the scene of three explosions on December 23.
The cargo ship Ursa Major had set sail for Vladivostok from St. Petersburg to, officially, “deliver 'specialized' cranes and hatch covers for icebreakers.” But 12 days later, three explosions in the Mediterranean caused the ship to sink south of the Spanish city of Cartagena.
The United Nations convention respected
The rescue zone being under Spanish responsibility, two Spanish rescue ships and a Navy patrol boat went to the scene of the accident to assist the crew. While two sailors are still missing, 14 others were saved.
The Spanish media indicated this Thursday that this was the only intervention authorized by Russia to the Spanish rescuers. As provided for in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Spain had to transfer control of rescue operations to Moscow.
Large Russian cargo ships recently arrived in the Mediterranean
While Russia defends the idea that the Ursa Major was only a merchant navy ship, the Kremlin quickly dispatched a team to the scene to take over the operations. Another Russian ship was quickly transported to the scene while the Russian media Mediazona recently reported that five Russian cargo ships, including three large military landing ships and two freighters, recently entered the Mediterranean.
For its part, the British press indicated that the ship was on a secret mission and was sailing towards Syria with a “mysterious cargo”, the Spanish authorities were unable to examine it. The ship's captain only indicated that the boat was carrying empty containers.
For Ukrainian military intelligence, the cargo ship was heading to Syria to collect weapons and other Russian military equipment before transporting them to Vladivostok.
As a reminder, Russia spoke of a “planned terrorist attack” and announced that it was conducting an investigation to clarify what had happened. The ship is now at a depth of 2,500 meters.
According to American diplomacy, Oboronlogistika OOO, the company that owns the sunken boat, would be “the only supplier to the Russian Ministry of Defense for the transport of troops to certain regions of Russia.” The Ursa Major and another ship, the Sparta, would have been involved in the “Syrian Express”, a supply route for Russian forces in Syria.
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