Russian President Vladimir Putin has threatened that Moscow will seize European ships. The Kremlin leader wants to respond in this way to the confiscation of Russian ships by EU countries.
“I would like to draw attention to the recent decisions of the European Union. We see that the authorities of some countries, violating international maritime law, are trying to restrict the movement of ships belonging to our economic operators, I mention, peaceful ones. They even launched the idea of confiscating our ships and selling the goods they stole from us,” Putin said during a visit to Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.
He described the initiative of the European countries as piracy and robbery, and reported that if this happens, the Russians will be “obliged to respond in kind”, writes Meduza.
From Putin’s words, the ships could be seized “wherever we deem necessary and opportune, including in the area of responsibility of the Pacific Fleet”. In turn, the commander of the naval forces in the region confirmed that the troops are ready to detain the ships of “unfriendly countries”.