“On March 3, in close proximity to the territorial waters of the member state of the European Union, the Republic of Malta, an attack was carried out on a Russian vessel, the gas carrier Arctic Metagaz,” the statement said.
“The tanker was en route with cargo, documented in accordance with all international regulations, from the port of Murmansk. The attack on it was carried out from the coast of Libya by Ukrainian unmanned boats,” the ministry said.
“Thanks to the coordinated actions of the Maltese and Russian rescue services, all 30 crew members, citizens of Russia, have been rescued,” the ministry said.
The ministry said that it classifies this incident as an “act of international terrorism and maritime piracy, a gross violation of the fundamental norms of international maritime law.”
Such “criminal acts .. should not go unpunished by the international community,” it said.
Malta forces
The Armed Forces of Malta also released a statement on the incident regarding the sansctioned LNG carrier.
“Earlier this afternoon, the Rescue Coordination Centre Malta of the Armed Forces of Malta was informed of a distress situation outside its search and rescue area involving the merchant vessel MT Arctic Metagaz while transiting the central Mediterranean,” the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) said in a statement on Tuesday.
Upon receipt of the alert, RCC Malta initiated verification procedures and efforts to establish the exact position of the vessel.
“The vessel was located, and coordination actions were undertaken in line with international search and rescue obligations, including broadcasts to shipping and liaison with relevant international authorities,” the AFM said.
According to the AFM, survivors were subsequently located within the Libyan SRR (search and rescue) in a lifeboat during the search effort.
“All crew were reported safely onboard the lifeboat,” the AFM said.
The AFM did not provide further details.
Arctic LNG 2
Several reports and videos posted on social media on Tuesday said that the 2003-built LNG carrier Arctic Metagaz caught fire southeast of Malta early Tuesday morning.
The LNG carrier last reported its position as sailing off the coast of Malta on Monday, according to its AIS data provided by VesselsValue.
It appears that the vessel loaded LNG at the 361,600-cbm Saam FSU, located in Ura Bay near Russia’s Murmansk, and sailed around the United Kingdom and Spain into the Mediterranean.
Arctic Metagaz, previously known as Metagas Everest, has been sanctioned by the US and the UK as it is used to transport sanctioned LNG from Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 facility to buyers at China’s Beihai terminal.
According to reports later on Wednesday, citing a press release by the Libyan Ports and Maritime Transport Authority, the LNG carrier sank after an explosion and massive fire.
The reports say that the wreckage is located in the Libyan search and rescue zone.
