New Zealand not responsible for ship seized by Finland - MFAT

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade says New Zealand is not responsible for a Cook Islands-registered vessel carrying Russian oil seized in Finland.

The ministry said the country is concerned about Russia's use of a "shadow fleet" of vessels to circumvent sanctions.

Reuters reports Finnish authorities seized a Cook Islands-registered ship carrying Russian oil in the Baltic Sea, suspecting it caused a power cable outage and damaged or broke four internet lines.

The vessel, named by authorities as the Eagle S, was boarded by a Finnish coast guard crew that took command and sailed the vessel to Finnish waters, a coast guard official said at a press conference.

"From our side we are investigating grave sabotage," Robin Lardot, director of the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation, told Reuters.

"According to our understanding, an anchor of the vessel that is under investigation has caused the damage," he added.

A Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson said they were aware of the incident but that the country was not responsible for the management of the Cook Islands shipping registry.

The Cook Islands self-governs in free association with New Zealand. It conducts its own affairs, but Aotearoa needs to assist when it comes to foreign affairs, disasters and defence.

They said New Zealand shared concerns with the Cook Islands government over its shipping registry being used to aid Russia's shadow fleet, and this impact this could have on their international reputation.

"New Zealand is concerned about and opposed to Russia's use of a shadow fleet of vessels to circumvent sanctions and support its war on Ukraine. We recently joined the UK-led "Shadow Fleet" Call to Action, in order express these concerns."

Last month, Foreign Minister Winston Peters announced new chemical weapons and missiles sanctions against Russia in response to the invasion of Ukraine.

New Zealand joined Australia in the 'Call to Action' statement on sanctions-evading 'shadow fleet' activities.

In attempting to bypass sanctions, shadow fleet vessels have a pattern of ignoring maritime safety and environmental rules, avoiding insurance costs, and engaging in other unlawful actions, the nations said.

"The 'shadow fleet' presents significant threats to all countries," the statement said.

Incident under investigation

Finnish investigators believe the seized ship may have caused the damage by dragging its anchor along the seabed.

Video and photos published on Friday by the Finnish daily Ilta-Sanomat showed the Eagle S with a single anchor chain stretching into the sea from its starboard side, while the hole where the port side anchor chain would normally be was empty.

Finnish police told Reuters they were investigating the Eagle S on suspicion of "aggravated criminal mischief", and that crew members had been questioned.

On Friday local time, Finland said it had asked the transatlantic military alliance NATO for support.

"We have agreed with Estonia, and we have also communicated to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, that our wish is to have a stronger NATO presence," Finnish President Alexander Stubb told a news conference.

Rutte posted on the social media platform X that "NATO will enhance its military presence in the Baltic Sea", without elaborating. A NATO official declined to provide further detail.

United Arab Emirates-based Caravella LLC FZ, which according to MarineTraffic data owns the Eagle S, did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

India's Peninsular Maritime, which according to MarineTraffic acts as technical manager for the ship, was not immediately available for comment to Reuters.

- RNZ w/Reuters

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