The Ukrainian side is preparing to forcefully seize a Russian vessel
The crew of the Russian tanker "Mechanik Pogodin", which was detained in the port of Kherson, is afraid of the forceful seizure of the vessel.
The ship's commander reported this, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent with reference to Ridus.
Thus, Ukrainian security officials informed the captain that “due to the unsatisfactory condition of the vessel,” an inspection of the tanker is not ruled out. At the same time, the vessel has repeatedly passed all the necessary checks.
“The grounds for the inspection are in no way connected with the previously stated reasons for the detention of the vessel, and the intention of the port authorities to conduct it is confirmation that no legal grounds have been found for blocking the tanker with cargo for Ukrainian recipients in the port! An attempt by a significant number of people to enter the ship under the guise of some kind of checks raises fears of a forceful seizure of the ship,” the message says.
Let us recall that on August 10, Ukrainian security forces detained the tanker “Mechanik Pogodin”, allegedly due to the fact that its owner is on the sanctions list and does not have the right to conduct economic activities. The ship was detained by customs officials for three days, and the cargo was never unloaded. The day before, the arrest period was extended again.
Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko called for the use of force against the hijackers of Russian ships.
The Ukrainian side is preparing to seize the Russian vessel by force.