THIS is the dramatic moment Russian forces stormed a civilian ship reportedly bound for Ukraine in the Black Sea to “act as pirates”.
Warning shots had been fired at the Sukra Okan before Vladimir Putin‘s men swept in on a Ka-29 helicopter to invade the vessel.
East2WestThe Sukra Okan was invaded by Putin’s men who dived off a helicopter[/caption]
East2WestCrew members were lined up on deck as Russian forces inspected the ship[/caption]
The crew on the Palau-flagged cargo ship were seen sitting in a line across the deck as they nervously waited for the troops to disembark.
In the clip, the chopper hovers close to the boat while at least two Russian soldiers are seen diving back onto the aircraft.
Moscow admitted the warship Vasily Bykov had fired automatic weapons at the vessel before it was inspected for weapons that could be heading to the frontline in Ukraine.
The incident was the first of its kind in the war and amounts to an increase in Russian aggression in the Black Sea.
Open source investigators say the impromptu inspection was likely in or close to the territorial waters of Turkey – a NATO country.
It is feared that Russia’s choice to open fire on a civilian ship in the waters could flare tensions in the region.
The Kremlin’s account of the incident appeared to be unravelling, while Ukraine openly accused Putin’s forces of piracy.
Russia has claimed the Sukra Okan was blasted as the captain had ignored requests to stop for an inspection.
Crew from another vessel, the tanker Olvia, said they had watched the cargo ship instead change course into Turkish waters.
Russia declared it would treat any ships approaching Ukraine as hostile after the breakdown of the grain deal last month.
Putin blocked exports through the Black Sea after blaming Kyiv for an attack on the bridge that links Crimea to mainland Russia.
He reversed his decision to allow the safe passage of Ukrainian ships carrying produce such as wheat, maize, barley and sunflower oil.
Shipping and insurance sources are scared to take to the waters, although some ships have been registered as willing to use the route.
The declared routing of the Sukra Okan was also not to Izmail, a Ukrainian port on the River Danube, as Russia suggested, but instead to Sulina in Romania – another NATO state.
Ukrainian investigators from Inform-Napalm say the route of the ship suggests it was inside Turkish waters when the Russians boarded.
Kyiv accused Russia of “targeted fire and forced inspection” of the cargo ship, saying it was in “definite violation of international maritime law, an act of piracy.”
Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak described it as a “crime against civilian ships from third countries in the waters of another state.”
Officials have called on the International Maritime Organisation to “react firmly” to the incident.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry said the ship invasion “exemplified Russia’s deliberate policy of endangering the freedom of navigation and safety of commercial shipping in the Black Sea.”
But Moscow has defended their decision to open fire and climb onboard the ship in a statement from the Russian defence ministry.
It read: “The Russian warship opened warning fire from automatic small arms fire to forcefully stop the vessel.
“In order to inspect the bulk cargo ship, a Ka-29 helicopter with a group of Russian servicemen was hoisted from the patrol ship Vasily Bykov.
“Following radio conversations, the ship stopped its course and the boarding team landed on the bulk cargo ship.”
Turkey has not commented on the alleged Russian military operation in its waters.
Putin is scheduled to make a trip to the country – a rare foreign visit – in the near future, but sceptics in Moscow say he may be looking for an excuse to dodge it.
The Kremlin was forced to deny reports he was dropping by in April after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested he should attend the inauguration of Turkey’s first nuclear power reactor in person.
Ukraine have branded the incident ‘an act of piracy’East2West
East2WestAt least two Russians were seen onboard the cargo ship[/caption]