Swedish authorities boarded a Russian cargo ship under sanctions on Sunday after it anchored in Swedish territorial waters following engine problems, in the latest incident between NATO countries and Moscow-linked vessels in the Baltic Sea region.
The Adlera roll-on/roll-off cargo ship that analysts say has previously been used to transport weapons, experienced technical issues on Saturday and stopped in Swedish territorial waters. It was boarded overnight by customs officials and border guards on Sunday.
“Shortly after 1:00 am, we boarded the vessel with the support of the Swedish Coast Guard and the police to conduct a customs inspection,” said Martin Höglund, a spokesperson for the Swedish Customs Administration. “The inspection is still ongoing.”
The crew was cooperative, and the inspection continued into Sunday morning, according to Swedish customs. Local media reported that Swedish intelligence and prosecutors were also involved in the case.
Höglund declined to reveal what the customs service had found on board the ship.
According to the ship-tracking service Marine Traffic, the Adler is a 126-meter-long roll-on/roll-off container ship. It is anchored off Höganäs, in southwestern Sweden.
The vessel is owned by the Russian company M Leasing LLCwhich is included on the sanctions lists of the United States, the European Union, and multiple European countries for their role in transporting North Korean ammunition for use in Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to OpenSanctions, a database of sanctioned companies and individuals.
The Adler issued a distress call Saturday morning near the Swedish town of Höganäs, in the strait between Denmark and Sweden. It had departed from the Russian port of Bronka, outside St. Petersburg, on December 15, although customs officials said they had no information about its destination.
“The owners are on the sanctions lists, so we also take that into account when we do a customs check, which complicates the whole thing a bit,” Höglund said.
The boarding by Swedish officials comes after several vessels belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet cut cables and pipelines in the Baltic Sea in 2024, culminating in Finnish border guards rappelling down onto the Eagle S tanker on December 26 of last year to arrest his crew.
Finland filed a case against the captain and senior officers of the Eagle S for gross sabotage after determining that the cables cut by the ship were in international waters.
The Adler has previously been detained by a NATO country when Greek forces boarded it in 2021 to ensure it was not carrying weapons to Libya, sparking Russian anger.
There is growing concern among NATO countries bordering the Baltic Sea about Russia’s shadow fleet, made up of vessels used to circumvent Western sanctions on oil, as well as cargo ships carrying weapons.
The Lady Mariiaanother Russian roll-on/roll-off vessel that has been used to transport weapons, also developed engine problems off the coast of Sweden earlier this month but regained control within a few hours.
