Since first info appeared on 28 July locally in Sweden, a story of a hijacked “Arctic Sea”, Malta-registered, Russian-crew-completed, Finish-timber carrying ship reached Russia/the Commonwealth of Independent States on 11 August at last as a Russia’s president commanded personally the operation securing and return of his citizens hijacked.

The Sochart-Archangelsk (ph/fax 78182- 420262 / 420203) is a Russia-based operating owner of the “Arctic Sea”.

For quite understandable reasons such drama is of an understandable interest to regional states if even neither ship nor destination of foreign produce directly linked to.

Really, if a total worth of a ship and goods declared officially not to exceed US$3Mln, what is a point to hijack such a wreck near Sweden for demanding a ransom in waters of Northern Africa or even much southern?

Or is this a test terrorists are undertaking to check international possibilities to implement valid international agreements on piracy and cooperation in open waters in order to distract attention from a different region more dangerous action using nukes to be executed?

In any case, a strange-to-date story to be monitored in this blog. Arctic Sea hijacked, photo by intermedia.