Putin Threatens Retaliation for Western Seizures of Russian Commercial Vessels

Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened retaliation for Western seizures of Russian commercial vessels during a visit to a Pacific naval exercise on Wednesday, characterizing the detentions as "piracy" And a violation of international maritime law.

"It's nothing but piracy and robbery," Putin said. "If this is done, we will be forced to respond in kind."

Putin indicated that any Russian response would not be limited to the waters where vessels were seized, stating Moscow could retaliate "in any area where we see it as necessary and appropriate," Including the Pacific.

The Pacific Fleet chief, Adm. Viktor Liina, told Putin that the navy was prepared to conduct inspections of commercial ships operated by "unfriendly nations." He noted that many vessels operated by British, French, and other European carriers fly flags of other nations, functioning as a "shadow fleet."

"We have enough assets for inspection and detention of vessels of the unfriendly nations and their shadow fleet," Liina said. "We are ready to start performing the task."

Russia operates a fleet of hundreds of ships to circumvent international sanctions imposed following its military intervention in Ukraine in February 2022. France and the United Kingdom have detained tankers suspected of belonging to Russia's shadow fleet, while the EU has sanctioned hundreds of such vessels.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia's Security Council, argued that European carriers similarly use "flags of convenience" And stated that Russia has the right to apply a symmetrical approach, saying "Russia has the right to attack any merchant vessel belonging to hostile nations, whether in our waters or in neutral waters, provided there are reasonable grounds to suspect it is carrying cargo in the enemy's interest." He added that numerous such vessels exist and that Russian military operations could expand significantly beyond the Black Sea region.