Tsahkna's remarks followed the seizure of the Kiwala in an operation that began Thursday evening and concluded early Friday morning, with the ship impounded off the island of Aegna, near Tallinn.

Efforts to tackle Russian shadow fleet activity in the Baltic and North Sea are working and also protect the environment and maritime safety, the minister noted.

This was the first shadow fleet vessel detained by Estonia. Tsahkna praised the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF) for its actions.

He said: "We are acting in a coordinated and targeted manner to protect our security and environment, and we are implementing our right to check suspected ships passing through Estonia's Exclusive Economic Zone."

"The shadow fleet vessel Kiwala entered Estonian waters without registration and insurance and it has been sanctioned by the EU, the U.K., Canada, and Switzerland," he went on, via a press release.

Starting in June last year, Estonia was the first country to begin checking Russian shadow fleet vessels. Since then, it has checked the documentation of nearly 500 ships sailing in its waters.

In the Kiwala's case, the tanker was sailing west to east, headed for the Russian port of Ust-Luga, after starting its voyage in India.

The operation began as the Kiwala approached Estonia's territorial waters on Thursday evening, and continued once it entered them, at around 3 a.m. local time Friday.

The Estonian Navy (Merevägi) is part of the EDF and from 2023 has solely been responsible for maritime patrols, after the civilian Police and Border Guard Board's (PPA) fleet was merged with it.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!