Open Editor's Digest for free
Rula Khalaf, editor of the Financial Times, picks her favorite stories in this weekly newsletter.
A Russian cargo ship operated by the Defense Ministry's Logistics Fleet sank on Tuesday in international waters between Spain and Algeria while en route from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok.
The ship, called Ursa Major, sank after an explosion in its engine room. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that two crew members were still missing, while 14 others were rescued and transported to the Spanish port of Cartagena.
At 142 metres, the equivalent of roughly one and a half football fields, the Ursa Major was the largest ship operated by Oboronlogicika, the logistics arm of the Russian military, and had a cargo capacity of 1,200 tons.
Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense (GRU) He said The ship had previously transported goods between Russia and Iran in the Caspian Sea before being reassigned to routes linked to Syria.
The ship was transporting cranes and equipment for icebreakers to Vladivostok as part of a “state mission” to develop the Northern Sea Route, according to information on the website of Oporonlogistica.
Moscow has in recent years pushed the North Sea route as a faster alternative to the Suez Canal for shipping to China, Russia's largest trading partner, which it has increasingly relied on in the face of Western sanctions.
The route lies entirely within Arctic waters but has become more navigable during the summer months due to the warming climate.
The standard journey from the northern Russian port of Primorsk to China via the Suez Canal takes 45 days, while the Northern Sea Route reduces this time to 35 days.
