A Russian warship opened fire at a Norwegian fishing boat in the Arctic, sparking fears over a direct war between Russia and the West.
The shocking incident occurred on September 12 but has only become public knowledge now.
The MS Ragnhild Kristine was at sea with Øystein Orten and his twin brother Torstein on board when the incident unfolded.
The Russian warship sent a warning message to the brothers that said: “This is Russian warship, you need to leave the area.”
Orten refused to comply with the order, recalling: “I replied that it was out of the question for us to move. We had longlines to take onboard.”
Orten’s 49ft ship was then targeted by the 535ft-long Russian ship called Admiral Levchenko.
Orten alleged the Russian warship fired a warning shot – which exploded in the water.
“It was a powerful blast, our boat was shaking,” he said.
The Norwegian fishermen then sailed west and the 6,200-ton Russian destroyer followed until the fishing boat was out of the danger zone.
Radio contract then followed between the Russian warship and the Norwegian coastguards.
The head of communication of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters, Lt-Col Vegard Finberg, told the Barents Observer that there was “nothing from our observations that can confirm any warning shot” while adding that “the fishermen might have experienced the situation [differently]”.
“The Norwegian authorities must put pressure on Russia so that they stop sabotaging Norwegian fisheries and shipping,” Orten told FriFagbevegelse.
The incident came outside Norwegian territorial waters, but inside the Norwegian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
Russia’s Northern Fleet had announced live shooting as part of the large-scale strategic exercise Ocean-2024, the largest naval war games since the end of the Cold War, overseen by Putin.
Orten said: “I glanced over my shoulder to starboard, and the warship came at us at full steam.
“The ship stopped 200 metres [220 yards] from us, broadside on.
“It was rather intimidating, you might say.
“They sounded their foghorn for around 15 seconds to get our attention.
“Then they fired a shot with a cannon somewhere into the sea. The sound echoed through our hull, and it shook.”
The head of the Norwegian Seamen’s Union also reacted to Norwegian seafarers being threatened and frightened in this manner.
“This is unacceptable sabotage against Norwegian seafarers,” said Kurt Inge Angell.
“An incident like this could easily have been avoided if there was a genuine desire to do so, for example, by improving communication from the Armed Forces and using more platforms.”
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