Sweden Seizes ‘Shadow Fleet’ Ship Suspected of Carrying Grain from Occupied Crimea

Although prosecutors did not explicitly link the vessel to Russia, Sweden’s coastguard previously said the ship’s captain was a Russian national suspected of using false documents. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied (The vessel was first detained by Swedish authorities in March. Photo: Swedish Coast Guard) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google Authorities in Sweden have seized a ship suspected of illegally exporting goods from Russian-occupied Crimea as part of Moscow’s so-called “shadow fleet.” Swedish prosecutors said on Wednesday that they had taken custody of the Caffa, a vessel first detained in March near Trelleborg on the Baltic coast, on the request of an unnamed third country that is investigating the ship’s activities.  Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official .  Although prosecutors did not explicitly link the vessel to Russia, Sweden’s coastguard previously said the ship’s captain was a Russian national suspected of using false documents.   Public broadcaster SVT has reported that the Caffa is suspected of being involved in the illegal export of grain from the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula in southern Ukraine.   Ukrainian authorities are fiercely opposed to such trade, leading local media outlets to speculate that Kyiv may be behind the request to seize the vessel. Moscow has long been suspected of operating a so-called  “shadow fleet”  comprising merchant ships sailing under foreign flags in an attempt to bypass international sanctions placed on Russia over its ongoing war in Ukraine.  Such ships have been used to transport sanctioned Russian oil and gas products as well as grain from Crimea – which has been under complete Russian control since 2014 but is still recognized as Ukrainian territory by most of the international community.  Other Topics of Interest Ukraine Expands List of Banned Anti‑Ukrainian Publications Ukrainian authorities added 11 new titles to a blacklist of propaganda books, citing efforts to counter Russian propaganda. Ukrainian authorities are currently involved in a  bitter spat  with Israel over shipments of alleged “stolen grain” from occupied lands, with Kyiv asking Israeli authorities to seize a vessel docked in Haifa Bay.