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Russian Officials Call for Stronger Action Against Western 'Piracy' of Ships

Russia's top prosecutor and the speaker of the upper house of parliament have condemned the seizure of Russian ships and crews, describing such actions as 'piracy' and violations of international law. They called for heightened legal and public pressure against Western countries and the Ukrainian regime.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 distinct · 1 masthead · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Apr 15, 2026 Published Aug 13

Lead

Russian officials have stepped up their rhetoric against what they describe as Western "piracy" of Russian ships, with the nation's top prosecutor and the speaker of the upper house of parliament calling for stronger legal and public pressure against the countries involved. The statements came during a plenary session of the Federation Council on April 15, where Prosecutor General Alexander Gutsan responded to an inquiry from Speaker Valentina Matviyenko.

Coverage Comparison

Two reports from the Russian state news agency TASS covered the event, focusing on the officials' condemnation of Western actions and their call for a response. Both accounts highlight the officials' use of strong language, including "piracy" and "terrorist acts," and frame the issue as a violation of international law by Western countries and Ukraine. No independent verification of the incidents described was available in the sources.

Key Claims

Seizures of Russian ships described as 'piracy'

Prosecutor General Alexander Gutsan condemned the seizure of Russian ships and crews, as well as the harassment of Russian citizens abroad, asserting that such actions violate international law. He was quoted as saying, "These actions are in direct violation of international norms and laws." Gutsan also emphasized what he called a "troubling rise" in Western countries' "piracy," including the detention of Russian vessels engaged in oil and gas transportation under existing contracts.

Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko echoed this characterization during the session, stating that cases of Western countries "engaging in acts of piracy" have become more frequent. She described such detentions as "without a doubt, a gross violation of international law, truly piracy."

Accusations of Ukrainian 'terrorist acts' against Russian ships

Both officials accused the Ukrainian regime of carrying out "terrorist acts" against Russian vessels. Gutsan highlighted the "Ukrainian regime's terrorist attacks against Russian vessels," while Matviyenko added that these actions are causing "massive damage to the ocean's ecology."

Call for increased pressure

Matviyenko called for Russia to "step up its actions within the legal framework" against Western countries that attack Russian vessels. She proposed flooding these countries with "letters and objections" and creating conditions where the issue is "voiced publicly in the information space, in the judicial system, and so on." She addressed Gutsan directly, saying, "Let's further intensify our pressure against those who commit such crimes."

Criticism of Western Green parties

Matviyenko also criticized Western Green parties, which she said have traditionally been "fierce defenders of the environment," for staying silent on the alleged Ukrainian attacks on Russian ships and the resulting ecological damage.

How this outlet told it

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TASS — English · 2 articles

Framing: Call to action against Western countries

as of Apr 15, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC

Framing: Condemnation of Western countries' actions

Facts Included:

Prosecutor General Alexander Gutsan condemned the seizure of Russian ships and crews
Gutsan emphasized the rise in Western countries' piracy
He highlighted the Ukrainian regime's terrorist attacks against Russian vessels
Gutsan stated that these actions violate international law

Read the source article →

as of Apr 15, 2026, 11:15 AM UTC

Facts Included:

Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko called for increased action against Western countries
Matviyenko stated that Western countries are engaging in acts of piracy
She highlighted the Ukrainian regime's terrorist acts against Russian ships
Matviyenko criticized Green parties in Western countries for staying silent

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

AI-extracted; can misattribute a claim — see Methodology.

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimProsecutor General Alexander Gutsan condemned the seizure of Russian ships and crews, as well as the harassment of compatriots abroad, asserting that such actions violate international law.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC
ClaimWestern countries are engaging in acts of piracy, including the detention of Russian vessels engaged in legitimate oil and gas transportation under existing contracts.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC
ClaimThe Ukrainian regime is carrying out terrorist attacks against Russian vessels.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC
ClaimFederation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko called for increased action against Western countries.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 11:15 AM UTC
ClaimGreen parties in Western countries are staying silent on the issue of Ukrainian regime's terrorist acts against Russian ships.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 11:15 AM UTC
ClaimThe actions of Western countries and the Ukrainian regime violate international law.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 15, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 distinct · 1 masthead · 2 articles consulted: TASS — English 6 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-13