Norway Seizes Russian Vessel to Enforce Hague Award for Ukraine

Norway seized the Russian-owned cruise ship Professor Molchanov off Svalbard on 2 September 2026 after a 24-hour coast guard standoff. The move enforces a 2023 Hague arbitration award ordering Russia to pay Ukraine's Naftogaz $4.22 billion for expropriating its Crimean assets. Russia called it piracy and vowed to challenge the ruling. The ship had been tracked for months.