An operation to tow a Russian tanker adrift in the Mediterranean Sea failed on Wednesday, leaving the laden vessel unmoored about 120 nautical miles north of the city of Benghazi, Libya, according to the Libyan Ports and Maritime Transport Authority.
Libya’s effort to tow the ship to safety failed when the towing cable snapped and could not be reattached, officials said in a statement, warning that the tanker poses a “significant environmental and navigational threat.”
The 900-foot vessel, the Arctic Metagaz, has been drifting at sea since early March, when the crew abandoned the vessel after a drone attack. It held at least 700 tons of fuel and “a substantial quantity of natural gas,” and was attacked southeast of Malta, according to Russia’s foreign ministry. The attack left a gaping hole in the hull, aerial footage showed, alarming international government and maritime officials who fear a potential environmental disaster from any gas or fuel leaks.
The Arctic Metagaz is considered part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” operating in violation of European and American sanctions. The ship’s name was changed last year, according to online ship records. Before the change, several Western countries, including the United States, had placed restrictions on the vessel.
Russia has blamed Ukraine for the attack on the tanker. Ukrainian officials have not commented on the claim.
“The Ukrainians, on stuff like this, play their cards close to the chest,” said John C.K. Daly, a nonresident fellow at the Central Asia-Caucasus Institute in Washington who has been tracking the war in Ukraine and retaliation on Russian shadow fleet vessels.
Ukraine has stepped up strikes on Russian tankers over the past year, including in the Mediterranean Sea, creating a new and expansive front in the conflict between the two countries. But this was the first attack on a tanker carrying liquefied natural gas, Mr. Daly said, hitting Russia harder than other strikes because this type of vessel is more expensive than standard fuel tankers.
The unsuccessful effort to tow the ship is the second failed salvage operation on the vessel this month. It comes amid a wider international maritime crisis as navigating the open seas grows increasingly dangerous.
The Russian vessel was struck just days after the American-Israeli attack on Iran in late February prompted retaliatory strikes on commercial ships in the Persian Gulf, choking traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global waterway. That military showdown has left hundreds of vessels and thousands of civilian international sailors stranded in the volatile region, and the zone of conflict is expanding.
Last week, the United States also imposed a global blockade on Iranian-linked vessels, and the U.S. military has begun seizing ships. The moves raise legal questions and could undermine international principles of freedom of navigation, some experts say.
There are also concerns that the Houthis, an Iranian proxy militia in Yemen, could renew attacks on ships in the Red Sea, as they previously did in allegiance with Hamas in Gaza. Those attacks, which began in 2023, endangered civilian sailors, forced ships to reroute, raised shipping prices and threatened to cause environmental damage when a burning tanker was stuck at sea for weeks.
The International Maritime Organization did not respond to a request for comment on the drifting Russian tanker.
The Libyan maritime authorities have called on all vessels to keep a distance of at least five nautical miles from the drifting tanker and to report leaks or other emergencies.
The ship left Egypt in late January, according to VesselFinder, a maritime tracking service.
A senior Italian official, Alfredo Mantovano, previously called the situation “an environmental time bomb that threatens to cause serious damage throughout the surrounding area of the Mediterranean Sea.”
Elisabetta Povoledo contributed reporting.
Ephrat Livni is a Times reporter covering breaking news around the world. She is based in Washington.
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