A Russian cargo ship currently under U.S. embargo has sunk in the Mediterranean Sea following an explosion, leaving two crew members missing.
The Russian Foreign Ministry reported on its Telegram channel on Dec. 24 that the Ursa Major sank in international waters between Spain and Algeria following “an explosion in the engine room.”
“Of the 16 crew members (from the Russian Federation), 14 people were rescued (taken by the rescue service to the port of Cartagena, Murcia), two are missing,” the ministry said.
Both the vessel and its owner have been previously placed under sanctions by the United States for their ties to Russia’s military.
Distress Signal
Reuters reported that Spain’s Maritime Rescue Service said it had received a distress signal from the Ursa Major on Monday when it was located about 57 miles off the coast of Almeira.
It said it had contacted a nearby ship, which had reported bad weather conditions, a lifeboat in the water, and that the Ursa Major was listing to the starboard side.
Reuters reported that a Russian warship later arrived on the scene and took charge of rescue operations.
Spanish news outlet La Verdad reported that the ship’s captain said he was carrying empty containers at the time of the incident.
A still image obtained from a video dated Dec. 23, 2024, of the Russian cargo ship Ursa Major, which the Russian Foreign Ministry said sank in the Mediterranean Sea between Spain and Algeria after an explosion in its engine room. Social media via Reuters
The Ursa Major is on the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions list. It says that the Ursa Major is an alias name for a ship called SPARTA III that is linked to a company called SC South LLC.
According to VesselFinder, the 465-foot ship built in 2009 was supposed to arrive at the Russian far eastern port of Vladivostok by Jan. 22.
Russian news agency Interfax said that the Ursa Major belonged to the fleet belonging to Oboronlogistics, which operates the ferry route linking Ust-Luga and Baltiysk in Russia.
It was the largest vessel in the operator’s fleet and was carrying 380-tonne port cranes and 45-tonne hatch covers.
Oboronlogistics is a shipping and logistics company owned by the Russian Ministry of Defense. According to its site, Oboronlogistics‘ main objectives are to “guarantee the needs of the Ministry of Defence of Russia regarding transportation, storage and production of military and special purpose goods.”
Shipping news outlet Lloyds List reported in 2023 that Bangladesh denied entry to the Russian ship because of U.S. sanctions on Moscow, which at the time was carrying goods for Bangladesh’s largest nuclear power plant. The country’s project is supported by Rosatom, a Moscow-based state corporation specializing in nuclear energy.
Ukraine
Ukraine’s military intelligence HUR said on Telegram that the ship had been sent to Syria to remove weapons and military equipment after the fall of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
HUR said on X that the ship was also meant to evacuate Russian troops from Syria.
Since 2015, Russia has maintained a substantial military presence in Syria to support the Assad government.
Assad’s government abruptly collapsed on Dec. 8 after armed groups, led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham terrorist group, overran Damascus and other key cities.
Moscow, which granted asylum to Assad and his family, operates the Hmeimim Air Base in Syria’s northeastern Latakia Province and a naval base near the city of Tartus.
The Epoch Times has not been able to independently verify HUR’s claims.
Chris Summers and Reuters contributed to this report.
Owen Evans
Author
Owen Evans is a UK-based journalist covering a wide range of national stories, with a particular interest in civil liberties and free speech.
