The footage (click the photo above to play) shows the view of the "Baltic Spirit" from the helicopter at sunset around 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

It then shows the unit descending onto the deck down a rope and onto the vessel before they took control of the container ship.

The ship's crew did not offer resistance after it was boarded, the Tax and Customs Board said on Tuesday.

The 188-meter-long "Baltic Spirit" was sailing under the Bahamian flag and was traveling from Ecuador in South America to Russia when it was detained near the Estonian Island of Naissaar. it had a 23-member crew who were all Russian nationals.

Yesterday, the vessel was moved to Muuga harbor close to Tallinn to undergo an inspection, the Minister of Interior Igor Taro (Eesti 200) said took 10 hours due to its size.

The vessel left Estonia to conitnue it's journey on Thursday.

 Still room for improvement

Head of the K-Commando unit Marek Aas said on Tuesday that information about the ship came from the Tax and Customs Board.

"The operation proceeded peacefully. In these situations, K-Commando's task is always to board the vessel and ensure initial security so that other agencies, in this case, the Tax and Customs Board, can begin procedural actions," he explained.

Aas dismissed links to sanctions violations or the so-called shadow fleet.

"This was not a vessel from the Russian Federation's shadow fleet, nor was it a ship under European Union sanctions. For us, the focus of the operation was the likelihood of smuggling," he explained.

Aas said that although the operation was carried out independently, there is room for improvement in terms of resources.

"The actual situation means there should be at least two helicopters in the air: one for security, the other for task execution. You can always get there faster and with more personnel if there are more resources," he said, pointing out that only one helicopter was available this time.

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