The German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock stated that Russia poses a significant threat to European security because they are exploiting maritime vulnerabilities, deploying deceptive tactics to circumvent international sanctions, and compromising critical infrastructure. The Foreign Minister pointed to the incident involving a stranded oil tanker in the Baltic Sea as emblematic of broader Russian tactics that undermine regional stability. According to Baerbock, President Vladimir Putin’s strategy of deploying a "shadow fleet" of dilapidated vessels not only endangers maritime safety and the environment but also finances Russia’s ongoing war efforts in Ukraine. The tanker involved in the recent incident, named Eventin, is part of Russia's so-called shadow fleet. Although registered under a Panamanian flag, German authorities confirmed that the vessel belongs to a network used by Russia to avoid sanctions imposed by Western countries in response to its full-scale invas...
...so, why ask why?