Russia claims new Estonian legislation creates risks for Baltic Sea navigation

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday that Estonia’s adoption of legal amendments that came into effect enabling its navy to use force against foreign ships is considered as a “provocative plan.”

Russia’s spokeswoman stressed that the Baltic Sea is a shared water body for all its coastal states and warned that if Russian ships are affected by any of these actions, the country will respond.

Maria Zakharova said that it is hoping that all countries which abide by the international law would be objective in their assessment of Tallinn’s decision which “creates major risks,” as she said, “for Baltic Sea navigation and regional security.”

The full statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, in Moscow, on April 17 is as follows and can also be found here.

“Starting from April 14, 2025, legal amendments came into effect in Estonia, enabling its Navy to use force against foreign ships. The Navy can now intercept, reroute or use other means for forcing civilian vessels to change course or sink them, if necessary.

“This mandate covers Estonia’s maritime zone, which includes its internal sea waters, the territorial sea and the country’s exclusive economic zone, which is not part of the coastal state as per the international law.

“Russia firmly condemns these pirate-like aspirations because the mandate of the Estonian Navy transcends and violates international law, including the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea, which is a universal instrument. It is evident that Tallinn is acting in bad faith, seeking to undermine international law in both the letter and spirit.

“If Russian ships are affected by any of these actions, our country will respond to the risks and threats posed by Estonia, a NATO member state, accordingly.

“Russia stresses that the Baltic Sea is a shared water body for all its coastal states.

“It is our hope that all countries which abide by the international law not just in word, but in deed, would be clear-eyed and objective in their assessment of Tallinn’s provocative decision, which creates major risks for Baltic Sea navigation and regional security.”

^{Source: Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs}