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Moscow Points Finger at Ukraine After LNG Tanker Fire in Mediterranean

Wednesday, March 4, 2026 at 5:20 AM

Russian officials claim Ukrainian naval drones attacked one of their liquefied natural gas ships in the Mediterranean Sea, causing a fire. All 30 Russian crew members aboard the Arctic Metagaz were reported safe following the Tuesday incident. If verified, this would mark the first Ukrainian assault on a Russian LNG vessel.

MOSCOW – Russian transportation officials on Wednesday pointed the finger at Ukraine following a fire aboard a Russian natural gas tanker in the Mediterranean Sea the previous day.

Moscow claims Ukrainian naval drones targeted the Arctic Metagaz, a vessel carrying liquefied natural gas, in what would represent the first such assault on a Russian LNG ship if the allegations prove accurate.

Ukrainian security services have not yet responded to requests for comment regarding the accusations.

This incident follows a pattern of Ukrainian forces striking Russian petroleum facilities and energy-related targets as part of efforts to cut off revenue streams supporting Moscow’s military operations.

According to Russia’s transportation ministry, all 30 crew members aboard the vessel – all Russian citizens – remained unharmed during the incident.

“We qualify what happened as an act of international terrorism and maritime piracy, a gross violation of the fundamental norms of international maritime law,” the ministry said in a statement.

Officials said the ship, which had departed from Murmansk in Russia’s Arctic region with its cargo, came under attack in waters near Malta’s jurisdiction. Russian authorities expressed gratitude to Maltese emergency response teams for their assistance.

The transportation ministry claims the Ukrainian drones originated from Libya’s coastline when they launched the assault.

Neither the vessel’s Russian management company LLC SMP Techmanagement nor Novatek, Russia’s leading LNG producer, have issued statements about the maritime incident.

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