What's happened
Two Russian tankers, Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239, sank in the Kerch Strait during a storm, spilling thousands of tonnes of oil into the Black Sea. The incident has raised concerns over environmental damage and prompted calls for stricter sanctions against Russia's aging oil fleet. One crew member died, and several others were rescued.
Why it matters
What the papers say
According to Luke Harding in The Guardian, the sinking of the Volgoneft-212 and Volgoneft-239 has been described as the worst pollution incident in the Black Sea this century. Harding notes that Ukrainian officials have accused Russia of recklessness, stating that the tankers should not have been at sea during a storm. Meanwhile, the Moscow Times reported that Russian authorities have initiated a criminal investigation into the incident, highlighting the government's response to the environmental disaster. The BBC emphasized the scale of the oil spill and the ongoing rescue operations, while Politico noted that President Putin has ordered a working group to manage the aftermath of the incident. These contrasting perspectives illustrate the complex interplay of environmental, regulatory, and political issues surrounding the sinking of these tankers.
How we got here
The incident occurred amid ongoing tensions between Ukraine and Russia, particularly following Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014. The tankers were part of a shadow fleet used by Russia to circumvent Western sanctions imposed after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
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More on these topics
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Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, previously holding the position from 1999 until 2008.
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The Kerch Strait is a strait connecting the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, separating the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea in the west from the Taman Peninsula of Russia's Krasnodar Krai in the east.
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Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which borders it to the east and northeast.
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The Black Sea is a body of water and marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean between Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Western Asia. It is supplied by a number of major rivers, including the Danube, Dnieper, Southern Bug, Dniester, Don, and the Rioni. The wate