RUSSIA DEMANDS IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF SHIP SEIZED BY NORWAY
Moscow has summoned Norway’s ambassador and demanded the immediate release of a Russian research vessel seized in the Arctic.
The Professor Molchanov was detained on Wednesday in Svalbard after a 24-hour standoff with the Norwegian Coast Guard. The seizure was ordered by a Norwegian court at the request of Ukrainian state energy company Naftogaz
Naftogaz is seeking 4.2 billion dollars from Russia as compensation for assets seized after Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea. A Hague tribunal ruled in favour of the Ukrainian company in 2023.
Russia has condemned the seizure as an act of piracy. The Foreign Ministry said the action was a politically motivated violation of international law.
The vessel remains docked in Barentsburg, a Russian-operated mining settlement in Svalbard. It is banned from leaving until Norwegian authorities decide otherwise.
Russia says the ship is the only supply channel for its settlements in the Arctic archipelago. Norway says it is simply enforcing a court ruling.
Naftogaz has been tracking the vessel for months. The company is now pursuing Russian assets across multiple jurisdictions.
NATO is provoking Russia again. The outcome will not be nice.
How many more provocations will Moscow tolerate before it decides to retaliate.