Maritime authorities are warning mariners to avoid an unoccupied Russian oil tanker that has been drifting between Italy and Malta for days after an alleged drone strike, raising fears of an environmental disaster.
Surveillance video shot from above showed the smoldering black vessel listing to one side, with a large gash on its port side and a film-like substance in the surrounding waters.
The Russian-flagged Arctic Metagaz, which was carrying about 900 metric tons (992 U.S. tons) of diesel fuel and more than 60,000 metric tons (66,000 U.S. tons) of liquefied natural gas, was intact, according to Italian authorities.
It is said to be part of Moscow’s so-called shadow fleet, a fleet of aging tankers that has been secretly transporting Russian oil around the world despite U.S. and European sanctions following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The 277-meter (909-foot) ship left the Russian Arctic port of Murmansk bound for Egypt, according to the Vessel Finder website.
However, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on March 11 that earlier on March 3 it was “attacked by sea and air drones in neutral waters of the central Mediterranean, approximately 168 nautical miles southeast of Malta.”
After the fire, 30 crew members, some of whom suffered burns, abandoned ship. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the Libyan Coast Guard and the Russian Embassy in Libya jointly rescued them from the lifeboat and took them to Benghazi. She called the attack on the merchant ship an “act of terrorism.”
Russia’s Transport Ministry said a Ukrainian navy drone was responsible for the attack, Reuters reported. Ukraine has yet to comment on the incident.
Zakharova called the incident a “blatant violation of international law” and could have serious consequences.
“It is worth noting that the attack took place close to the coast of an EU member state, but so far not a single European country has condemned the incident,” she said.
The Arctic Genki is said to be part of Moscow’s so-called shadow fleet. – Newsbook Malta/AFP/Getty Images
Although the incident occurred in international waters, the Italian government is increasingly concerned that changes in wind direction could push the ship closer to Italian territory, according to Italian naval authorities.
They discussed the issue at a special meeting on Friday with the ministers of defence, foreign affairs, energy, maritime affairs and civil protection, as well as Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni. A Foreign Ministry spokesman who attended the meeting told CNN that the group advised Meloni that the ship could not safely dock in the Italian port, calling it a “gas-filled time bomb.”
There is no one believed to be on board the tanker, which has lost all power and steering control. Meloni said in a statement after the meeting that her government was in “continuous contact” with the Maltese authorities and that both countries were closely monitoring developments.
Both Italy and Malta have dispatched tugboats and anti-pollution assets, ready to intervene if necessary. The ship drifted on Sunday about 20 nautical miles off the Sicilian island of Linosa, part of the archipelago that includes Lampedusa.
Responsibility for the salvage ultimately fell to the ship’s Russian owner, SMP Techmanagement, but neither Italian nor Maltese authorities have confirmed any links to the group. CNN tried to contact the owner.
According to Malta Today, Maltese authorities have commissioned a specialized maritime salvage team to determine whether the tanker can be safely towed to port or whether it should sink at sea. The Italian Coast Guard declined to confirm to CNN whether this was also part of a plan to tow it into deeper waters.
Global conservation group World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has warned of potential threats to the environment, particularly if tankers sink with “extremely dangerous” cargo.
“Potential spills could lead to wildfires, cryogenic clouds lethal to marine wildlife and massive, long-term contamination of water and atmosphere,” the group said in a statement on Friday.
The group says the area where the ship is now drifting is home to nearly every protected marine species found in the Mediterranean, with bluefin tuna and swordfish also passing through.
“The area is of special ecological value, with a fragile deep ecosystem and one of the highest biodiversity in the Mediterranean basin,” the organization warned. “As a result, the environmental risks are very high and potentially irreversible, with serious consequences for the economy of the Pelagi Islands, which is based on fishing and tourism.”
When the ship was hit, the Libyan port authority mistakenly reported to Mediterranean maritime authorities that the ship sank after suffering a “sudden explosion and fire,” Italian naval authorities told Italy’s special commission.
Days later, Maltese authorities spotted the ship and alerted Italy, with both countries warning anyone at sea to stay at least five nautical miles away from the ship.
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