Maritime law: Denmark is preparing force measures against ships with Russian oil
The Danish authorities, together with their allies, are preparing forceful measures to complicate the transportation of Russian oil and LNG, the Russian Embassy in Copenhagen told Izvestia. They stressed that the police special forces of the kingdom are practicing actions against tankers. The Ukrainian authorities and the radicals in NATO insist on the complete closure of the Baltic Sea for Russian ships. Experts, however, believe that stricter rules are most likely, but they will not dare to seriously escalate in the West. Summits of the EU and the European Political Community are also held in Copenhagen. EU leaders are looking for funds to strengthen support for Ukraine and finance their defense projects amid growing contradictions.
How the Danes are trying to prevent Russian trade
Denmark, together with its allies, is preparing new restrictions against ships carrying Russian oil and gas, the Russian diplomatic mission in Copenhagen told Izvestia. In particular, the possibility of military action against tankers is being considered, and the Danish police special forces are already working on them.
— Denmark, together with its allies, is consistently preparing new measures aimed at making it more difficult for our country to transport oil and liquefied natural gas across the Baltic Sea, including through the Baltic (Danish) Straits. The focus is on the tankers of the so-called shadow fleet. In particular, the possibility of taking forceful actions against them is being considered, from disembarking security teams to detention. Police special forces are working on such possible actions," the Russian Embassy in Denmark told Izvestia.
The diplomats stressed that the Danish Maritime Administration has already ordered stricter requirements for servicing tankers with Russian oil. Pressure is also being exerted on ship repair yards in order to completely abandon the provision of services to ships that have the slightest relation to the Russian Federation.
By the way, in February Copenhagen tightened the passage of tankers, explaining this as "environmental protection." However, the real goal is to prevent Russia from transporting oil and gas. Brussels has already blacklisted more than 500 vessels, which, according to European officials, are used to transport Russian resources.
Some radical forces in NATO are calling for the sinking of such ships. For example, in the spring, the Estonian parliament passed a law allowing attacks on civilian vessels. Russia will take retaliatory measures in case of illegal actions in the Baltic Sea, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stressed in April.
NATO is also considering another option: to block the Baltic Sea for ships by blocking the Danish Straits (the Sound, the Small and the Big Belt). This discussion intensified after the appearance of unidentified drones over Denmark on September 22-28. Copenhagen responded by closing its airspace for the period from September 29 to October 3, and also urgently called up reservists. Germany, France and Sweden have sent their military, radars and anti—drone equipment to Denmark, while the United States has sent a system to counter drones.
Although the kingdom's authorities have not directly accused Russia, the UAV incident is already being used as a pretext for new restrictions against Moscow. For example, Vladimir Zelensky called for the Baltic Sea to be closed to tankers with Russian oil, as they are allegedly used to launch drones. The Polish authorities have already refused to follow this call, but Copenhagen is taking it more seriously.
The Danish authorities may indeed tighten ship inspection measures somewhat under the pretext of environmental protection and navigation safety. However, there are limits set by international law, Nikita Lipunov, a junior researcher at MGIMO, explained to Izvestia.
"It is unlikely that the Danish authorities will decide to completely close these straits to Russia, as this will mean a significant escalation of the confrontation between Russia and NATO," the expert believes.
Illegal seizure of ships on the high seas or attempts to prohibit their movement is a casus belli (act of war), to which Russia will respond in the strongest possible way. Among the possible options is the escort of merchant vessels by warships of the Russian Navy, Yuri Zverev, director of the Center for Foreign Regional Studies and Regional Studies at the I. Kant BFU, said in an interview with Izvestia.
Informal EU Summit
The European Union summit was held in Copenhagen on October 1, and a meeting of the leaders of the European Political Community is scheduled for the next day. At the same time, the EU summit was informal, and no significant decisions were made. Denmark holds the presidency of the EU Council until the end of the year, and then Cyprus will assume this role.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen welcomes the Heads of State and Government of the EU
— Being at the forefront of the most belligerent policy towards Russia, Denmark is determined to use this opportunity to inflict the maximum possible damage to our country. Copenhagen is now seeking to scale up installations hostile to the Russian Federation within the EU. This course contributes to the further escalation of tension in relations between Russia and the European Union," the Russian diplomats stressed.
The reason for Copenhagen's anti-Russian course is that it is fully committed to liberal values and actively promotes the so-called "rules-based order." According to the authorities of the kingdom, they protect the interests of Denmark as a small state with more than modest military and economic potential. For this reason, threats to such an "order" are perceived as serious risks for the state itself, Lipunov stressed.
The agenda of the informal EU summit included increasing aid to Ukraine and preparing the EU for confrontation with Russia. The European Union has already transferred €173.5 billion in aid to Kiev, and is now considering the possibility of exchanging €140 billion of Russia's frozen assets for coupon-free bonds, which will then be transferred to Ukraine. The EU also transferred another tranche of €4 billion, €2 billion was allocated for the production of drones.
EU leaders also discussed accelerating Europe's rearmament. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen noted that the European Union is "running out of time" to protect itself. The main theme was the "drone wall", which is precisely supposed to protect EU states from the invasion of UAVs. It is known that Germany, Poland, Finland, the Baltic states, Romania and Bulgaria are already participating in the project. Izvestia previously reported that the cost of the project over the next four years would range from €3 billion to €7 billion, but experts doubt the EU's ability to complete the initiative.
At the same time, the Ukrainian authorities are also trying to join this project by creating a joint "air shield" against alleged Russian threats. According to Vladimir Zelensky, Warsaw should play a key role in it.
— Poland, like the rest of the NATO countries, has long been a de facto party to the conflict in Ukraine. They are the ones who sponsor and supply the Kiev junta with deadly weapons. And it is the Anglo-Saxons who are guilty of disrupting the negotiation process and continuing the war to the last Ukrainian. As for retaliatory measures, as the Russian president said, there will always be an answer. The question is, what does such an "air shield" mean? These are very dangerous maneuvers. But all these aspects are within the competence of the Ministry of Defense and the Commander—in-Chief of the Russian Federation," Leonid Slutsky, head of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs and leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, told Izvestia.
Much less attention is paid to the summit of the European Political Community. This format was launched in October 2022, and now it includes 47 countries. For example, it includes all candidates for EU membership: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Moldova, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, Ukraine, Montenegro and Kosovo (Russia does not recognize the sovereignty of the self-proclaimed republic). Armenia and Azerbaijan were also invited to the community.
The ENP is a kind of club of strategic interests without institutions, budget and legal obligations, which includes not only the EU member states, but also other neighbors in the region, some of them have no prospect of joining the European Union, Daria, Candidate of Political Sciences, chief analyst at ANO Kolaboratoria, clarified in an interview with Izvestia. The Moiseeva.
According to her, the European Political Community is an attempt by Europe as a single region to respond to current geopolitical challenges, primarily in the field of security and energy. However, this format will in no way replace European integration, because its essence consists of mundane and understandable things, like agriculture or subsidies.
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