Russian border guards detained the Cyprus-flagged cargo ship Västerbotten in the Gulf of Finland as it sailed for Estonia’s Sillamäe port, according to Estonia’s Police and Border Guard Board.
Västerbotten was sailing from Mönsterås in Sweden to Sillamäe when it was stopped after entering Russian territorial waters.
The vessel was using a route available to ships under an arrangement between Russia, Estonia and Finland that allows larger vessels to avoid shallows on the Estonian side of the Gulf of Finland.
The ship later resumed its voyage towards Estonia and had reached Sillamäe by Friday morning.
The Estonian Transport Administration said it had received no explanation from the Russian side for the detention. “Every country has the right to exercise control over ships in its territorial sea, and apparently the Russian administration considered it necessary to inspect this ship when it passed through their territorial sea,” said Are Piel, head of the Estonian Transport Administration’s vessel traffic management department.
Russia temporarily restricted passage through the area during the detention before later lifting the restriction. The case follows the May 2025 detention of the Liberian-flagged tanker Green Admire after it left Sillamäe using the same agreed route through Russian territorial waters. Estonia’s Transport Administration subsequently said vessels travelling to and from Sillamäe would instead be directed through Estonian territorial waters.
Västerbotten, IMO 9436226, is a 6,800-dwt general cargo ship built in 2008 and measuring 119.3 metres in length. It is listed in the Baltic fleet of German ship operator and broker Navalis Shipping.