Norway seizes Russian Arctic science vessel at Kiev’s request

Professor Molchanov was the only vessel operating a direct passenger link between the Russian mainland and Svalbard Norwegian authorities have seized a Russian research vessel in Svalbard at the request of Ukraine’s state-owned energy company Naftogaz, amid growing tensions between Moscow and NATO states over access to and control of the Arctic.

The Professor Molchanov was detained on Wednesday while docked in Barentsburg, a Russian settlement on the Norwegian-administered archipelago.

The Governor of Svalbard said the move followed an August 31 order by the Nord-Troms and Senja District Court granting Naftogaz the right to seize the ship.

The vessel has been barred from leaving Barentsburg until further notice.

The crew and passengers aboard the vessel learned about the seizure from media reports, a TASS correspondent traveling with the expedition said.

Russian Far East and Arctic Development Minister Aleksey Chekunkov told reporters on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum on Thursday that “the crew is safe.” The Professor Molchanov is a Russian state-owned research vessel operated by the country’s hydrometeorological service, Roshydromet.

Alongside scientific expeditions, it has served since last year as a regular passenger and cargo link between Murmansk and Barentsburg, transporting scientists, employees of the state-owned Arktikugol trust, contractors, their families and supplies to the Russian settlements on Svalbard.

Read more Putin warns West over ship seizures Direct air links between Russia and Svalbard ceased in 2020, while direct maritime passenger service was restored in 2025.

The Professor Molchanov is currently the only vessel operating the route, with ten round trips between Murmansk and Barentsburg planned for 2026.

Under the 1920 Svalbard Treaty, Norway exercises sovereignty over the archipelago, while signatory nations are granted equal rights to engage in commercial and scientific activities there.

Russia has maintained a presence on Svalbard for decades, with Arktikugol serving as its principal economic operator on the islands.

Naftogaz said it sought the seizure as part of an international effort to enforce a Hague arbitration award over assets it lost in Crimea following the peninsula’s reunification with Russia in 2014.

Read more NATO creating new Arctic front against Russia – Lavrov Russia has rejected the arbitration tribunal’s jurisdiction over the dispute, arguing that the Crimean assets in question could not qualify as Ukrainian investments made on Russian territory under the relevant bilateral investment treaty.

Acting Naftogaz chief Sergey Fedorenko praised the move as “another important step toward restoring justice,” pledging to continue the hunt for Russian assets worldwide.