A newly built Russian fishing vessel, the Mechanik Stepanov, experienced a sudden mechanical failure near the southern entrance of the Øresund Strait over the weekend.
The 50-meter crab boat, commissioned in 2025 from the Otradnoye Shipyard on Russia’s Neva River, had cleared all inspections and sea trials and departed St. Petersburg on September 10 for its home port in the Kuril Islands.
After sailing west through the Baltic Sea, the vessel suffered a blackout on the night of September 13. AIS data showed it drifting in a busy shipping lane near the Øresund before dropping anchoring.
The incident raised concerns because of the ship’s location close to vital undersea pipelines and communication cables that are part of Europe’s energy network.
NATO member states quickly deployed naval forces to monitor the situation. Reports said the Latvian Navy minesweeper LNVS Virsaitis (A53) and the Danish patrol boat Bopa (MHV 911) were dispatched to the
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