Sweden seizes ship carrying grain from occupied areas and targets Russia’s “ghost fleet”

English Posted on  —by Carro e motos
Sweden seizes ship carrying grain from occupied areas and targets Russia’s “ghost fleet”
Sweden seizes ship carrying grain from occupied areas and targets Russia’s “ghost fleet” (X @CarlOskar)

Sweden carried out an operation in the Baltic Sea to seize the cargo ship Caffa, accused of transporting grain from occupied Ukrainian territories.

The action took place near the city of Trelleborg and involved Sweden’s special forces (Nationella insatsstyrkan), police air support, and coast guard agents, who boarded the ship during a mission dubbed “Svart kaffe” (black coffee).

According to authorities and maritime monitoring data, the vessel allegedly loaded grain in Sevastopol in July 2025 — cargo that Kyiv considers stolen. Due to its involvement in export schemes linked to occupied territories, the ship was placed on Ukraine’s sanctions list. Swedish Civil Defence Minister Carl-Oscar Bolin stated that the cargo ship changed its Russian flag to that of Guinea in an attempt to conceal its activities.

At the time of interception, the ship was traveling from Casablanca to St. Petersburg. Swedish authorities say the Caffa already had a record of violating international regulations. The coast guard noted that the operation had been planned in advance with detailed risk analysis, while investigators began searches on board and questioned the crew.

Stockholm treats the case as part of a broader offensive against the so-called “ghost fleet” used to bypass international sanctions. A similar episode occurred on March 1, 2026, when Belgian military forces, with support from France, intercepted the tanker Ethera near Ostend. The vessel, 180 meters long and also sailing under the Guinean flag, was identified by intelligence as part of this network and taken to the port of Zeebrugge for investigation.

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Source: Militarnyi | Photo: X @CarlOskar | This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team

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