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A Russian ship that sank in the Mediterranean in late December 2024 after an engine-room explosion may have carried components for nuclear reactors used in submarines, a Spanish government document says. The document, registered with Spain’s parliament in February and first reported by CNN, was described by the Associated Press as including a written response from the Spanish government to opposition lawmakers.
The Ursa Major sank on Dec. 23, 2024, in an area between Spain and Algeria during what the document says was a journey from St. Petersburg toward Russia’s eastern port of Vladivostok. Spanish rescue craft recovered 14 people, while two crew members were lost, according to the account in the parliamentary-registered document.
In the response to lawmakers, the Spanish government wrote that the ship’s captain “confessed” that the vessel was carrying “components for two nuclear reactors similar to those used in submarines.” The document also says the captain told Spanish officials that the ship was not carrying nuclear fuel, when the captain was questioned upon rescue by the Harbor Master in Cartagena, Spain.
The parliamentary response described the ship’s manifest as listing 129 containers, two large cranes and “two well covers.” Officials in the document said that when the captain was questioned during the rescue, he identified the “well covers” as nuclear components, while also saying the ship was not carrying nuclear fuel.
The document further says Spanish authorities were not able to search the wreck during the rescue operation, which focused on saving the crew and searching for the two missing members. It adds that the wreck lies at 2,500 meters (8,200 feet) deep.
At the time of the sinking, Oboronlogistika, the Russian state-owned ship owner, said the Ursa Major was sabotaged. It described three powerful explosions that damaged the boat just above the water line and characterized the event as a “terrorist attack,” according to the AP report, and said the company was under U.S. and European Union sanctions for ties to Russia’s military.
Russian officials also faced questions about the cargo claims as the parliamentary document came into public view. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters during a conference call on Wednesday that he “hasn’t seen the reports regarding the ship’s cargo” and added, “there is nothing for us to comment on here.”
With the wreck resting deep underwater, the Spanish account leaves open how fully the cargo claim can be verified. The document’s description of the manifest details and the captain’s statements stand alongside the Russian owner’s earlier sabotage account, but the Spanish government said it could not conduct a search of the ship during the rescue itself.