What's New
The cargo ship Ursa Major, which sank in the Mediterranean Sea following an engine room explosion, is the latest incident that has raised questions about the seaworthiness of Russia's ships and deals another blow to its seagoing capabilities.
Newsweek has contacted Russia's Defense Ministry for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Monday's incident is the latest piece of bad news for Russian seafaring over the last year. There have been Ukrainian strikes on its Black Sea Fleet, as well as a growing number of technical problems with its container vessels.
Moscow could also lose a port in Syria following the downfall of Bashar al-Assad, and Russia faces a new round of sanctions targeting its "shadow fleet" circumventing oil sanctions.
What To Know
Ursa Major, a 409-foot general cargo ship had sailed from St. Petersburg on December 11 and was scheduled to arrive in Vladivostok on January 22 but sank in the Mediterranean Sea after an explosion on board around midday Monday.
The blast in the engine room caused the listing between Spain and Algeria of the vessel, which was taken to the Spanish port of Cartegena. Some 14 crew members were rescued, but two remain missing, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Telegram.
Spanish daily newspaper La Verdad reported that the busy shipping lane was declared unsafe for navigation, and a rescue operation was undertaken by vessels including a Russian military vessel, and a Spanish Navy patrol boat. The captain said containers on the vessel were empty at the time of the accident.
Dark days for Russia's seafaring global terror operations as yet another ship sinks off the coast of Spain.
The fully loaded "Ursa Major" carrying God knows what...now gone, taking several crew members to Davy Jones Locker. pic.twitter.com/GQehpR5sUQ
Spanish authorities have officially confirmed that the Russian government-owned cargo ship MV Ursa Major has sunk the Western Mediterranean.
The vessel went down overnight, mariners in the area are advised to keep a lookout for wreckage. pic.twitter.com/GRxm21wcK8
The Russian cargo ship „Ursa Major“ sank in the Mediterranean Sea. In this footage it is heavily listing to starboard. Reportedly, an explosion occurred.
This expensive Russian ship was on route to Vladivostok and transported heavy mobile cranes for the harbor.
Source:… pic.twitter.com/dpAYTZmaDy
It is unclear what the vessel's purpose was, but Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) said on Monday that a Russian ship called Sparta sent to Syria to bring out Russian military equipment had broken down and was drifting in the Mediterranean.
The image next to the HUR's social-media post showed an old picture of Ursa Major when it was called Sparta III.
Another Russian ship called Sparta is also in the Mediterranean Sea near the Ursa Major and independent outlet Meduza, citing OSINT analysts, suggested both ships could be part of Russian convoy to evacuate military equipment from Syria.
Images of the ship shared on social media said it was carrying cranes for loading and unloading in ports.
Oboronlogistics, the firm that owns both vessels, said Ursa Major was carrying equipment for the "implementation of state tasks for the development of port infrastructure and the Northern Sea Route."
Anton Gerashchenko, Ukrainian internal affairs adviser, noted on X, formerly Twitter, how OSINT analysts said the vessel was carrying "hatches for the nuclear reactor of the Project 10510 nuclear icebreaker and two port mobile cranes."
On December 16, the tanker Mercury lost propulsion due to a failure of its main engine, around 30 miles northeast of Simushir island in the Russia's fareastern Sakhalin region.
A day earlier, the tanker Volgoneft 109 sent out a distress signal following a reported leakage in a cargo tank while near the port of Kavkaz in the Krasnodar region.
Two other Russian-flagged tankers—Volgoneft 212 and Volgoneft 239—were caught in a storm south of the Kerch Strait between Krasnodar from Crimea.
The first vessel split in half and sank, spilling oil and killing at least one crew member. The second vessel was damaged and drifted until it ran aground near the Port of Taman, also leaking oil and sparking concerns of an environmental disaster in the Black Sea.
What People Are Saying
Russian Defense Ministry, according to Tass, said: "The Russian dry cargo ship Ursa Major sank after an explosion in the engine room. As a result of the incident, 14 people were rescued, 2 went missing."
OSINT analyst Oliver Alexander wrote on X: "The complete loss of the two cranes and icebreaker hatches is a massive blow to Russian operations in Vladivostok."
Pro-Ukrainian X user Jay in Kyiv wrote: "Dark days for Russia's seafaring global terror operations as yet another ship sinks off the coast of Spain."
What Happens Next
Ursa Major was sanctioned due to the war in Ukraine. Heavily involved in transporting cargo to Tartus, the BBC reported although its future role remains unclear.
Russia will try to maintain its military presence in Syria with the transitional government.
However, concerns remain over the fitness of Russia's sanctioned vessels and the environmental risks posed by older ships in Moscow's "shadow fleet" that circumvents oil sanctions.
New EU sanctions have banned another 52 Russian ships and the Nordic Baltic Eight group of countries have demanded maritime authorities request proof of insurance from suspected shadow vessels passing through some bodies of water in Europe.
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