Russia wanted to claim a larger area of the Baltic Sea. At least, that was clear from a document previously published by the Russian Defense Ministry. This document has now been removed from the site. “It was a senseless provocation,” says Alex Ude Elferink, professor of international law of the sea at Utrecht University.
Russia clears plans over Baltic Sea claims: 'It was a senseless provocation'
The document stated that the borders around the Russian islands in the Gulf of Finland and the Kaliningrad enclave should be expanded. But such a unilateral border expansion makes no sense, says Udi Elferink. “Russia has signed internationally recognized treaties that everyone must abide by,” he says. “It also includes the Baltic Sea border.”
“Russia has signed internationally recognized treaties and everyone must abide by them.”
It is possible that Russia published the document to see how people would react to the plans. “To see if there is room to move the boundaries.” Finland and Lithuania expressed their concerns. The Lithuanian Foreign Ministry spoke of a “deliberate and escalating provocation.” Finnish Foreign Minister Elena Valtonen stressed that Russia must adhere to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which regulates the demarcation of maritime zones.
Read also | Russia claims Finnish and Lithuanian territorial waters
They were proven right: documents containing plans to claim more space in the Baltic Sea were removed.
Old coordinates
Russia stated in the document that the current measurements depend on old coordinates that do not match modern measurements. That's not true, says Oude Elferink. “These treaties refer to a system that goes back to 1942, but it is linked to a system that all countries use. That goes back to 1984. For me, there is no doubt about where those maritime boundaries are.
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