Swedish coast guard boards suspected stateless ship in the baltic sea

Swedish Coast Guard Takes Control of Suspected Stateless Vessel Caffa in Baltic Sea

Incident Overview and Investigation Details

Boarding and Initial Control of the Vessel

March 6 (Reuters) - The Swedish coast guard said it boarded and took control of a suspected stateless vessel in Swedish waters of the Baltic Sea on Friday, and it was carrying out investigations on the ship.

"At 3:50 p.m. today, the Coast Guard took control of a vessel with unclear flag status and thus suspected of being a stateless vessel," it said in a statement, adding that the boarding had taken place off the coast of the southern Swedish town Trelleborg.

Flag Status and Vessel Identification

The ship Caffa was sailing under a Guinean flag, but the coast guard said it regarded the vessel to be stateless "based on national and international legislation". Swedish police said the ship was suspected of sailing under a false flag.

According to ship-tracking service Marine Traffic, Caffa is a 96-meter general cargo ship.

Political and Legal Context

Sanctions and Ownership Concerns

Sweden's minister for civil defence, Carl-Oskar Bohlin, said in a post on X that the ship was a freighter on Ukraine's sanctions list.

Flag Changes and Insurance Issues

"The ownership structure is unclear and there are suspicions that the vessel is not insured. As recently as this summer, the ship is said to have changed from a Russian to a Guinean flag," Bohlin wrote.

Legal Proceedings and Investigations

The coast guard said it had launched a preliminary investigation into suspected violation of maritime law regarding lack of seaworthiness.

"The Coast Guard has personnel on board to gather information about the condition of the vessel and crew, conduct searches, and conduct interviews," it added.

(Reporting by Greta Rosen Fondahn; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)