Dutch ports refused to allow fishermen from the Russian Federation, despite the presence of the necessary documents. Previously, vessels of the same “Norebo” company were suspected of espionage.
The incident happened a week ago. The Russian fishing vessel was not allowed to enter the Dutch port of Emshaven, and then to other ports as well. The vessel belongs to “Arctic Shipping”, which is part of one of the largest fishing holdings in Russia, the “Norebo” group, owned by oligarch Vitaly Orlov. Previously, the ships of this company were suspected of espionage, Meduza writes.
The Association of Shipowners of the Fishing Fleet (ASRF) of Russia claims that the ship had all the necessary documents — catch certificates, state port control forms and others. They were submitted in advance in accordance with EU requirements.
But the ship was not allowed to enter the port of Emshaven first, and then to the port of Welson. When they went to the ports of Germany, they were refused there too.
It is possible that the reason for not allowing Russian fishermen could be the investigation by the Dutch media that Russian fishing vessels may be involved in espionage activities. The material, in particular, mentioned the vessels of the Norebo company.
The authors of the investigation believe that fishing vessels from the Russian Federation, which “enter Emshaven without hindrance and moor near the military facility,” can spy on the what is happening in the port.
Especially since Emshaven is of strategic importance — 11 of the 15 Internet cables connecting Europe and America come ashore there, there are two floating LNG terminals, and work is underway to build a NATO ammunition depot.
There are grounds for suspicion. Journalists note that in 2022, the Naval Doctrine of Russia was updated, which stated that civilian vessels, in particular fishing vessels, can be used in wartime. At the time, Norebo called the opinion of the journalists “fantasy”.
“However, the restrictions on the part of the ports affected the activities of vessels under the Russian flag, there are no restrictions on the supply of fish products”, — reported in the Russian company.
Let us remind you that the Netherlands is one of the five largest export markets for Russian fish products, along with China, Japan, South Korea and Nigeria. According to the results of 2023, Russia exported 138 thousand tons of fish products to the Netherlands — 4% more than a year earlier.
This is not the first time that Russia has been suspected of espionage using fishing vessels. In April 2023, the special services of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland reported that Russian ships disguised as fishing trawlers and research vessels were allegedly equipped with underwater surveillance equipment.