Norwegian Coast Guard Detains Ship with Russian Crew Amid Investigation
On Thursday evening, the Norwegian Coast Guard seized the “Silver Dania” ship, with its Russian crew on board and is currently searching the vessel, interviewing the crew and collecting evidence. According to an official statement, the ship may be linked to an incident in which a fiber-optic cable in the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Sweden, was damaged. The ship was intercepted in the Norwegian economic zone off the coast of Troms, a province in northern Norway and was subsequently guided to the port of Tromsø.
The detention was based on a request from the Latvian authorities and a decision by the Norwegian Court of Nord-Troms and Senja. The ship, registered in Norway, operates between St. Petersburg and Murmansk.
“There is a suspicion that the ship may have caused significant damage to a fiber-optic cable in the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Sweden. The police are conducting an operation on the ship, which includes searches, interviews and the collection of evidence” a statement from the authorities said.
The Russian Embassy in Oslo has reportedly not received any information from the Norwegian police regarding the incident and has sent an official inquiry to the authorities in Troms.