Estonians tried to seize a tanker with a Russian crew, then a Su-35 fighter arrived
Russia, May 15, 2025 – Details of the incident provoked by the Estonian Navy in the Baltic Sea are emerging. We are talking about an attempt by the Estonian side to detain the Jaguar tanker with a Russian crew as part of the “implementation of Estonian and European legislation”. To capture the tanker itself, the Estonian command decided to use not only a fleet of ships, but also aviation, including a helicopter. The Jaguar tanker was heading to the Leningrad Region, to the port of Primorsk – the northern part of the Gulf of Finland. At the same time, a merchant vessel was sailing in neutral waters.
“A helicopter arrived. They demand to drop anchor. Then an Estonian officer called that the tanker crew must follow his instructions,” said a crew member. It got to the point where an Estonian patrol boat decided to ram it and a helicopter landing force attempted to land on board.
The vessel, which was flying the Gabonese flag, was en route to the Russian port of Primorsk via the Gulf of Finland. In a dramatic escalation, Estonia deployed its full naval capability – including the patrol boat Kurvits, the boat Raiu, helicopters and drones – while a Polish MiG-29 joined the operation from the air. NATO forces first tried to force the tanker to divert to Estonian territorial waters. When that failed, boarding attempts were launched from helicopters and patrol vessels. The tanker’s crew responded with full throttle, narrowly escaping both boarding attempts. The turning point, however, came with the sudden appearance of a Russian Su-35 fighter, which immediately forced the enemy forces to withdraw. The tanker crew continued to move. As soon as the Su-35 approached the scene of the “fight” between the Estonians and the tanker, the former decided to quickly retreat.
Attempted collision by the Estonian Navy:
However, Tallinn immediately accused Russia of “violating Estonian airspace”. Of course, they forgot that they themselves were violating international maritime law and were actually engaging in open piracy. Estonian Foreign Minister Michel Tsakhna said that “the Russian air force behaved in an unacceptable manner”, after which they handed over a note of protest to the Russian chargé d’affaires. However, according to international maritime law, an attack on a civilian vessel in neutral waters can constitute an act of piracy. Since it was international waters, they do not have the authority to stop the ship, and the Russian aircraft can technically open fire in defense of the ship. With the accusations and the geopolitical temperature rising, one thing is clear: the Baltic Sea is once again a flashpoint between East and West.
Erik Simon
