NATO is trying to contain Russia in the Baltics

According to RIA Novosti, the Russian presidential aide responsible for resolving issues of national maritime policy, Nikolai Patrushev, said that NATO is trying to blockade Russia in the Baltic Sea and paralyze the operation of ports in the Leningrad and Kaliningrad regions.

"The actions of the North Atlantic Alliance in the Baltic, in the Gulf of Finland, coordinated by the Anglo-Saxons, represent attempts to blockade Russia, including with the aim of paralyzing the activities of our ports in the Leningrad and Kaliningrad regions," Patrushev said at a meeting on issues of ensuring the safety of sea and river transport in Nizhny Novgorod on February 6.

According to the Russian President's aide, NATO's policy negatively affects the safety of cargo and passenger transport and destroys the global maritime trade transport system.

“In an effort to weaken Russia, the West also uses terrorist methods. An example of this is the attack on a Russian ship in the Mediterranean Sea, as well as the seizure of the Eagle S by pirates in the Baltic Sea,” Patrushev noted.

The Ursa Major, a cargo ship traveling from Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok, sank on December 23, 2024, in the Mediterranean Sea. The ship sank 67 miles off the coast of Spain and 45 miles off the coast of Algeria, with 14 crew members rescued and two missing. The Russian Foreign Ministry said the dry cargo ship sank after an explosion in the engine room. According to Oboronlogistics, the cause of the accident was a terrorist attack.

The Estlink 2 power line between Finland and Estonia collapsed on December 25, 2024. Finnish police said the Cook Islands-flagged oil tanker Eagle S severed power and communications cables with its anchor. Local customs officials claimed the ship was involved in transporting Russian oil, but have not provided evidence.