Russia's Foreign Ministry summoned Norway's chargé d'affaires, Bjørn Svenungsen, on November 3 and protested the attachment of Russian assets, including the vessel Professor Molchanov and real estate in Oslo. The protest was described in a Russian Foreign Ministry statement relayed by Russian news agencies.
According to the Russian ministry, the vessel was seized on September 2 in Barentsburg, on the Svalbard archipelago. The ministry linked the seizure to claims by Ukraine's Naftogaz and other companies. Reports relaying the ministry's position said a Norwegian court had rejected an appeal against the seizure by the company Arktikugol on October 28.
The Russian ministry also said that a Norwegian court had ordered the seizure of five Russian-owned properties in Oslo in late September. Those proceedings preceded the summons of the diplomat on November 3.
Moscow demanded that the seizures be lifted, citing the Svalbard Treaty and international rules on the immunity of state property. The ministry argued that forcing the vessel, which it says is not suited to winter mooring, to remain in place risked damaging the ship and harming the environment. These legal objections and assessments of the risks are those of the Russian government.