{"id":514249,"date":"2026-03-04T18:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T18:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/514249\/"},"modified":"2026-03-04T18:32:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T18:32:09","slug":"russian-gas-tanker-sinks-in-mediterranean-moscow-blames-ukraine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/514249\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian Gas Tanker Sinks in Mediterranean \u2013 Moscow Blames Ukraine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n [UPDATED: March 4, 8:20 pm
\n , Kyiv time. Updated to include Russian President Vladimir Putin\u2019s comments]\n <\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s Ministry of Transport said<\/a> Wednesday that a Russian gas tanker was attacked near Malta\u2019s territorial waters in the Mediterranean, catching fire and later sinking, and blamed Ukraine for the incident.<\/p>\n

The tanker, Arctic Metagaz, was carrying liquefied natural gas and is considered part of a so-called Russian \u201cshadow fleet\u201d transporting energy supplies under US and European sanctions.<\/p>\n

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Mediterranean Sea emergency: The Russian gas tanker ARCTIC METAGAZ (IMO 9243148) is on fire off the coast of Libya. The vessel is under sanctions for illegally transporting LNG. A preliminary attack by naval drones and a series of explosions are reported. A massive fire is on\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/Wh1Y8qIfZf<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 EcoProtector (@ProtectorE59290) March 3, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

The vessel, built in 2003, had departed Murmansk on Feb. 24 and was en route to Port Said, Egypt, after transiting the UK and Spain, according to ship-tracking platform Vessel Finder.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It last reported its position as \u2060sailing off the coast of Malta on Monday, \u200baccording to ship tracking data on the MarineTraffic platform, Reuters<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n

The Maltese Armed Forces\u2019 Search and Rescue Coordination Center reported<\/a> that all 30 crew members, all Russian citizens, were found safe in a lifeboat within Libya\u2019s search-and-rescue zone, about 240 kilometers north of the port of Sirte.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s Ministry of Transport accused Ukraine of carrying out the attack using unmanned boats launched from the Libyan coast.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe attack on the Russian tanker Arctic Metagaz \u2026 was an act of international terrorism and maritime piracy,\u201d the ministry said<\/a>, adding that EU authorities must not allow such criminal acts to go unnoticed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a terrorist attack. This isn\u2019t the first time we\u2019ve seen this kind of thing,\u201d Russian President Vladimir Putin said of the attack later on Wednesday, according to AFP.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Bank<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Other Topics of Interest<\/p>\n

Bank of Russia Challenges EU Sovereign Asset Freeze in EU Court<\/a><\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s central bank has filed a lawsuit at the EU\u2019s General Court, seeking to overturn a December 2025 regulation that indefinitely freezes its assets across the bloc.<\/p>\n

Ukrainian authorities have not commented on the incident.<\/p>\n

Ukraine has previously demonstrated the ability to strike Russian naval and logistical targets far from the Black Sea.<\/p>\n

In December, a Ukrainian strike reportedly hit the vessel Qendil<\/a>, another ship in the shadow fleet flying the Omani flag, near the waters between Crete and Malta.<\/p>\n