Lithuania: Ship with Russian chemicals barred from Klaipeda: PM

Lithuania will not allow a Maltese-flagged ship carrying ammonium nitrate from Russia to dock at the port of Klaipeda for repairs, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte announced, BNS reports. The vessel requested permission to enter the port to unload its cargo of 20,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate and carry out repairs by a company in Klaipeda. The ship is heading from Russia’s port of Kandalaksha to Las Palmas on Spain’s Canary Islands, but was allowed to dock at Norway’s port of Tromsø to repair damage caused by a storm, The Barents Observer reported. Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said that there was no evidence that the ship’s request was a provocation. Also, Algis Latakas, CEO of Klaipeda State Seaport, said that there was no reason not to allow the vessel to enter Klaipeda as the ship will unload its explosive cargo at another port. He noted that the ship was owned by a UAE-registered company with no links to Russia. The ship’s crew is mostly from Syria, LRT reports.