A Swedish court has ruled that a cargo vessel detained in the Baltic Sea earlier this year can be handed over to Ukraine, which suspects the ship was involved in transporting grain from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories, Reuters reported Friday.
The vessel, Caffa, was detained by Swedish police and coast guard authorities off the country's southern coast in March after it was found to be sailing under a false flag and in violation of maritime safety regulations. Authorities also determined the ship was unseaworthy because of its technical condition.
The case is one of several efforts by European authorities to scrutinize vessels suspected of helping move goods from Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories or circumvent sanctions imposed on Moscow since the invasion.
"The court confirmed that the seizure of the vessel Caffa was lawful and that it may be transferred to Ukraine," public prosecutor Hakan Larsson told Reuters.
The vessel's owner, Caffa Shipping Limited, had challenged the detention. The company now has three weeks to appeal the ruling, Larsson said.
