TWO CREW MEMBERS are missing after a Russian cargo ship sank in international waters in the Mediterranean after an explosion on board, Russia’s foreign ministry said on Telegram on Tuesday.

The Ursa Major sank “after an explosion in the engine room,” the Kremlin’s Foreign Ministry’s crisis unit said. Reports state that it was carrying equipment from Syria.

The ministry said that out of the 16 Russian crew members, 14 had been rescued and taken to the Spanish port of Cartagena and two were missing.

The ship’s owner Oboronlogistika, which belongs to the defence ministry and also provides civilian transport and logistics, said the Ursa Major was carrying harbour cranes and hatch covers for icebreakers.

The ship is operated by a subsidiary of that company, SK-Yug

The Ursa Major is listed on MarineTraffic.com as a 124.7-metre (409-foot) long general cargo ship that was sailing from the Russian city of Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok in Russia’s Far East.

Sky News reported that Ukraine’s military intelligence claimed yesterday that the ship had been sent to Syria to remove weapons and military equipment after the fall of the al Assad regime.

In a post on Telegram and X, formerly known as twitter, the agency said the ship broke down near Portugal.

Ship tracking data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) shows the vessel departed from the Russian port of St Petersburg on 11 December. It was last seen sending a signal at 10.04pm Irish time on Monday between Algeria and Spain.

Images of the ship show it was carrying large cranes on its’ upper deck.

With reporting from AFP.