The Estonian Maritime Administration of the Ministry of Transport said that Russia has detained the oil tanker "Green Admire", which is flying under the Liberian flag. The oil tanker was sailing along the agreed route through Russian waters after leaving the port of Sillamäe in Estonia.

The statement noted: "When the ship leaves Sillamäe Port, it needs to pass through the territorial waters of the Russian Federation because this route is safer for large ships than crossing the shallow areas of Estonian waters. This safe channel, which does not follow the national boundary line, has been determined through trilateral consultations among Russia, Estonia, and Finland."

Estonian authorities have decided to guide ships traveling to and from Sillamäe Port through their own territorial waters in the future to avoid similar incidents.

According to reports, the "Green Admire" oil tanker belongs to the Greek Aegean Shipping company. It was carrying oil shale and left Sillamäe Port bound for Rotterdam. According to Marine Traffic data, the ship departed on the evening of May 17 and was scheduled to arrive in Rotterdam on May 22. As of the time of publication, the oil tanker remains moored in the Gulf of Finland.

Russian business daily Kommersant has inquired with the Federal Security Service of St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region Border Guard Administration and the Federal Agency for Water and River Transport regarding this incident.

Estonian Foreign Minister Markus Cernak said that this incident was unexpected because there had been agreements between the two countries regarding this channel. "In the future, our pilots will guide ships out of Sillamäe Port through Estonian territorial waters. Although navigating through the shoals is more difficult and risky for large vessels, we will handle it properly. We must remain calm and respond in an orderly manner." ERR Public Broadcasting quoted his remarks as saying.

Cernak believes that there is no need to negotiate with Moscow at present, stating that the situation is "relatively calm": "The oil tanker has obeyed the instructions, and there has been no use of force—of course, we will continue to closely monitor whether the vessel can continue its journey." He also said he does not intend to summon the Russian chargé d'affaires in Estonia over this incident.

This week, the Estonian Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian chargé d'affaires in Estonia, Renar Salimurin, and submitted a protest note. The Estonian side accused Russian military aircraft of violating its airspace.

According to Delfi news website reports, on the evening of May 13, Russian Su-35 fighter jets entered Estonia's airspace near the Yuminda Peninsula without permission, staying for less than a minute. This incident occurred before the Estonian Navy attempted to detain the "Jaguar" oil tanker, which was flying under the Gabonese flag and heading to Russia. The ship was subject to British sanctions and belonged to Russia's "shadow fleet," according to Reuters.

On May 15, the "Jaguar" oil tanker, which had escaped interception by the Estonian navy, docked at the Primorsk Port in the Leningrad Region. Cernak later stated that this incident indicated that Russia was prepared to protect its shadow fleet.

The Russian Defense Ministry has repeatedly stated that the flights of Russian military aircraft always strictly adhere to international airspace usage rules.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7505935277144195623/

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