Russian ship's actions on Baltic Sea deemed suspicious
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has warned that a vessel belonging to Russia's so-called 'shadow fleet' was detected carrying out a suspicious operation on the Baltic Sea.
"A sanctioned Russian ship of the 'shadow fleet' performed suspicious manoeuvres near the power cable connecting Poland with Sweden," Tusk wrote on the X platform on Wednesday, adding that after an effective intervention by the Polish military, the ship moved off in the direction of a Russian port.
Tusk also said Poland had sent its naval survey vessel, ORP Heweliusz, to the location.
Later on Wednesday, Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz told a press conference that the incident occurred on Tuesday and the suspicious vessel was located outside of Poland's territorial waters. However, he said the ship performed its manoeuvres over a power cable belonging to the Polish power grid operator PSE.
Kosiniak-Kamysz also announced a special security meeting on Thursday at the Polish Navy's tactical command centre in Gdynia, northern Poland, with Tusk in attendance as well as representatives of the Polish Navy and other security services.
The so-called shadow fleet consists of substandard and uninsured tankers operating under various flags, which Russia employs to evade Western sanctions. The ships are also suspected of carrying out sabotage operations in the Baltic Sea.
The West, including the European Union and the United Kingdom, is targeting the fleet with additional sanctions, such as the new set of measures announced by the EU and UK on Tuesday. (PAP)
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