After Fitburg was detained on December 31, 2025 in the Finnish economic zone, it is located in the Finnish port of Kantvik near Helsinki. The ship was searched that same day.
The structural steel found on the ship is now under the control of Finnish customs, which is examining whether EU legislation applies to the case. This determines whether a case will be opened for violating EU sanctions legislation (Finland is a member of the European Union).
The publication explains that the ship itself, which flies under the flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and is operated by a company from Turkey, is not included in any sanctions lists.
At the time of detention by Finnish authorities, Fitburg was heading from the Russian port of St. Petersburg to Haifa (Israel). The crew of the ship consisted of immigrants from the Russian Federation, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan, all of them were detained by the Finnish police.
Euractiv reported, citing information from AFP and the police, that on January 1, 2026, two crew members were arrested, and two more were banned from leaving Finland. The nationality of these people is not indicated.
Context
The telecommunications company Elisa reported damage to the cable connection between Finland and Estonia in the Gulf of Finland on December 31, 2025. She noted that due to the redundant network structure, the failure does not affect Elisa's services in either Finland or Estonia.
According to the Finnish police, the location of the cable damage is located in the economic zone of Estonia.
Fitburg was detained after it was recorded that the vessel's anchor chain was in the water. The Border Guard ordered the vessel to stop and raise anchor, and also asked it to move to a safe anchorage in Finnish territorial waters.
