What's Putin doing off Estonia's coast?

DW (English)

After recent acts of sabotage, NATO warships are patrolling the coast of Estonia. Putin's shadow fleet uses the Baltic Sea to ship Russian oil all over the world. Most of the tankers are old and a potential hazard for the marine environment

Transcript

00:00A suspicious freighter off the coast of Estonia, detected by the Sakala, a vessel of the Estonian

00:09Navy on patrol in the Baltic Sea.

00:14As we approach the freighter, the soldier's suspicions are confirmed.

00:18This is no ordinary ship, but a Russian oil tanker flying a false flag, possibly part

00:25of Putin's so-called Shadow Fleet.

00:33As the Sakala draws closer, the crew checks for any suspicious activity, whether the ship

00:38suddenly slows down, makes a sudden turn or refuses to communicate.

00:47Missions like this have become routine for Captain Kantz and his crew.

00:52Yesterday we saw something hanging from an anchor chain from one cargo vessel.

01:00So we went closer, we contacted the vessel and we checked, actually it wasn't anything

01:07else but it was just a fire hose tangled in the anchor chain.

01:14In times of war, the Sakala is a minesweeper, specialized for the finding and disarming

01:19of sea mines.

01:22Its current mission, however, is patrolling the Gulf of Finland for NATO, together with

01:26two other Estonian warships.

01:33It's the Alliance's response to suspected acts of sabotage, which have increased in

01:38the Baltic Sea in recent months.

01:41Ships from the Russian Shadow Fleet are among those being investigated.

01:48The shadowy tankers have been cruising local fishing grounds for three years now.

01:53Heiko Heitur is a passionate local fisherman.

01:56He supplies restaurants here in Pihlaspea, northern Estonia, with mackerel, salmon, trout

02:02and perch.

02:06The situation in the Baltic Sea is a real worry.

02:11There are lots of these big ships in the sea.

02:18They're standing around waiting to sail on to Russia.

02:21We have no choice but to come to terms with the situation and to deal with the danger

02:25posed by the ships.

02:29Ships that are often old and poorly insured.

02:32Western authorities believe Moscow is using them to evade sanctions and as a tool of hybrid

02:38warfare against the West.

02:44A shipwreck dumping thousands of tons of oil into the sea would have dramatic environmental

02:49consequences.

02:51Heiko Heitur, retrieving today's catch, knows this better than most.

02:56If something were to happen, the fishing would be over.

03:02Pollution could spread quite quickly.

03:05That's the biggest danger, I think.

03:10NATO's increased presence in the Baltic Sea is intended to provide security.

03:15But many Estonians are not only worried about Moscow.

03:19Following Donald Trump's recent statements, they fear a US withdrawal from NATO, and that

03:25American soldiers might soon be sent home.

03:29Estonian President Alar Karis doesn't see this happening anytime soon.

03:34Despite that, he is overseeing a huge increase in defence spending, to 5% of GDP, a record

03:41among NATO countries.

03:43You have to realise the whole Europe is next to Russia, so we all border Russia.

03:51So it's not only Estonia, Finland and some other countries, it's the whole Europe.

03:55So if something is going to happen, I hope not, so the whole Europe is in trouble.

04:04Meanwhile, back in the Baltic Sea, the Sakhala is engaged in a training exercise with a Finnish

04:09warship.

04:13Both Finland and Sweden have now joined NATO, in response to Putin's attack on Ukraine and

04:18the threat to the rest of Europe.

04:26Though we don't feel the war directly at the moment, we know what's causing it and the

04:30presence of these ships at sea.

04:34Unfortunately, there is not much we can do, except look at the sea and hope for the best.

04:44One piece of good news, the number of suspicious vessels in the Baltic is said to have plateaued

04:49since NATO increased its presence there.

04:52It offers a bit of comfort to people who, like Heiko Heitor, call this Baltic Sea coast

04:58their home.

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