Finland needed Russian icebreakers: they can't cope on their own

Russian icebreakers are helping ships in the Finnish waters of the Gulf of Finland. Independently, neighbors cannot cope with abnormally thick ice, which paralyzes the movement of ships.

"The difficult ice situation and wind conditions have led to the fact that several cargo ships are stuck in ice in the international maritime area of the Gulf of Finland and in the territorial waters of Finland. In accordance with the usual winter navigation practice, vessels are assisted in international cooperation with Russian icebreakers," the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency reports.

The agency noted that Russian icebreakers provide assistance at its request.

"The goal is to ensure safety at sea under any conditions. The Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency is responsible for organizing winter navigation in Finland," the agency added.

According to AIS data, the diesel icebreaker "Captain Nikolaev" is operating in Finnish waters. On the evening of February 27, the vessel was operating 19 miles from Helsinki — at an anchorage where there are three tankers for the transportation of petroleum products. There is also a transport corridor to the specialized industrial port of Porvoo, where the Finnish icebreaker Sisu is already operating.

Also, "Captain Nikolaev" worked today in another area of the Finnish waters of the Gulf of Finland and broke ice in the international transport corridor.

As reported by EADaily with reference to the head of Rosatom Alexei Likhachev, the Gulf of Finland is frozen by 80% and the thickness of the ice reaches 30-40 centimeters. Therefore, a group of seven icebreakers was assembled in the Russian waters of the Gulf of Finland, headed by the nuclear-powered ship Siberia. The vessels provide the wiring of vessels, which is not one of the main sea export routes of Russia.