Swedish coast guard seizes suspected false flag tanker in Baltic Sea

STOCKHOLM, May 3 (Reuters) - The ‌Swedish Coast ​Guard ​said on Sunday it had seized a tanker in the Baltic Sea believed to be part ‌of Russia's shadow fleet, the latest in a ⁠string of similar actions carried out in recent months by the country's ‌authorities.

The Swedish Coast Guard ‌said in a statement that it and police had boarded the Syrian-flagged Jin Hui in Swedish territorial waters south ​of Trelleborg and begun a preliminary investigation into a lack of seaworthiness.

"The coast guard suspects that the ship ⁠is sailing under a false flag, given there are a number of irregularities ​concerning its flag status, and therefore does not meet demands for seaworthiness as set out in ​international regulations and agreements," it said.

The ‌coast guard said the ship, whose destination was unclear and was thought to be carrying ⁠no cargo, figured on several sanctions lists, including those of the European Union and Britain.

Swedish Minister for Civil Defence, Carl-Oskar Bohlin, ⁠said separately on X that the vessel was suspected of belonging ​to the Russian so-called shadow fleet.

European nations have stepped up efforts to disrupt the so-called shadow fleet of tankers used by Moscow to ‌fund its four-year war against Ukraine. Russia has condemned such moves as hostile.

So far this ‌year, Sweden has stopped five vessels on suspicion of various ⁠offences, including oil spills ‌and sailing under a ​false flag, and opened criminal proceedings against some crew members.

(Reporting by Niklas Pollard; Editing by Sharon ‌Singleton)

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