Major intl oil spill response exercise kicks of in the Baltic Sea

VILNIUS - Balex Delta, the largest international oil spill response exercise, has started in the Baltic Sea and will be open for the public to observe.

"The largest pollution response exercise in the Baltic Sea this year has started today, which is special in the sense that it is taking place in Lithuania and the Lithuanian Naval Forces (Navy) is dedicating its search and rescue and pollution response vessel Sakiai," Giedrius Premeneckas, commander of Lithuania's Navy, was quoted as saying in the army's statement on Monday.

"The ecological situation in the Baltic Sea is extremely important. Recently, we have been witnessing tankers from other countries moving from Russian ports in the Baltic Sea, and these ships are single-hulled, unsafe for sailing, and the risk of pollution spills increases," he said.

Taking place on August 26-29, the exercise has been organized by the Lithuania's Navy in cooperation with the port of Klaipeda, local firefighters and the Lithuanian Sea Museum. It is aimed at improving the preparedness of the Baltic Sea Region countries to jointly respond to major pollution incidents at sea.