Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on April 17, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Add as preferred source on GoogleEstonia's new law allowing naval force against foreign vessels is seen by Russia as a threat to Baltic shipping security, prompting warnings of a proportional response.
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that Estonia's adoption of legal amendments allowing the country's navy to use force against foreign vessels was a provocative action that poses risks to shipping and security in the Baltic Sea.
Zakharova said that Russia would react proportionately to instances of aggression against its vessels.
Last week Estonia seized the Kiwala, which has been under EU sanctions since February as part of Russia's so-called "shadow fleet", a term Western countries use for ships they say Moscow deploys to circumvent international sanctions. The ships are typically not regulated or insured by conventional Western providers. (This story has been corrected to say that Maria Zakharova was referring to Estonian legislation regarding foreign vessels, not the seizure of ship last week, in the headline and paragraph 1)
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Felix Light)
The main topic is Estonia's new legislation allowing its navy to use force against foreign vessels and the resulting security concerns in the Baltic Sea.
Russia has criticized the legislation and warned of a proportional response to any aggression against its vessels.
The 'shadow fleet' refers to ships allegedly used by Russia to circumvent international sanctions, often unregulated and uninsured by Western providers.
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