Estonian border guards have reportedly documented the first known case of a Russian civilian tanker equipped with machine guns operating in the Gulf of Finland, according to media reports citing surveillance imagery.
The vessel, identified as the Marshal Vasilevsky, a Gazprom LNG tanker transporting liquefied natural gas from mainland Russia to the Kaliningrad region, was observed in aerial photographs taken by an Estonian border guard surveillance aircraft in early May, Estonian outlet Eesti Ekspress reported.
The images show a machine gun mounted on board the ship, which would mark the first visual evidence that a Russian commercial tanker has been armed while operating in the Baltic Sea region.
According to the reports, the armament is believed to have been installed as a precautionary measure, potentially in anticipation of drone threats targeting Russian port infrastructure around Saint Petersburg, or in response to perceived risks of interdiction of energy shipments in the area.
Neither Estonian nor Finnish authorities have publicly confirmed the purpose of the weaponry, and it remains unclear whether the installation reflects an isolated case or part of a broader practice involving Russian maritime logistics linked to energy exports.
The development comes amid heightened security tensions in European waters and increased scrutiny of Russian maritime activity.
On June 23, French naval forces detained a sanctioned Russian tanker associated with the so-called shadow fleet in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Sicily, marking the fifth such interception by France in recent months.
Separately, Finnish authorities recently concluded an investigation into damage to undersea cables in the Gulf of Finland involving the vessel Fitburg, adding to regional concerns over maritime infrastructure security.
By Aghakazim Guliyev
