Russian 'spy' Beluga whale 'was being trained to guard Kremlin's military base but fled because it was a hooligan'

13 November 2024, 09:02

A Beluga whale that was branded a Russian spy by some onlookers fled a training programme to guard a military base, a scientist has claimed.

Hvaldimir, a whale that was found with a Russian harness off the coast of Norway, died earlier this year.

The whale first appeared in 2019 and made headlines amid speculation that it was carrying out espionage work for the Kremlin.

Russia shares a border with Norway, which is a founder member of NATO.

The Russian navy is known to have trained whales for military purposes. The Russian government has never confirmed or denied if its military trained Hvaldimir.

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But a Russian Beluga whale expert has now weighed in on the debate - and said that she does believe that Hvaldimir came from a Kremlin base.

Dr Olga Shpak, said she does not believe that the whale was a spy, but was instead being trained to guard an Arctic Circle military facility.

She said that she believed Hvaldimir fled because it was a "hooligan".

“For me it’s 100%," she told the BBC.

The whale was named by combining the Norwegian word for whale - hval - and Russian President Putin's first name Vladimir.

After the whale was found dead in September, it was lifted out of the water with a crane and taken to a nearby harbour where experts will examine it.

No cause of death was immediately obvious. Hvaldimir had appeared to be in good condition just days before its death.

Marine biologist Sebastian Strand told Norwegian broadcaster NRK: "Unfortunately, we found Hvaldimir floating in the sea.

"He has passed away but it's not immediately clear what the cause of death is," adding that no major external injuries were visible on the animal.

The 14ft whale was first spotted by fishermen near the northern island of Ingoya, not far from the Arctic city of Hammerfest, in April 2019 wearing a harness and what appeared to be a mount for a small camera and a buckle marked with the text: "Equipment St Petersburg."

Over the years, Hvaldimir was seen in several Norwegian coastal towns and it quickly became clear that he was very tame and enjoyed playing with people, NRK said.

Marine Mind said on its site that Hvaldimir was very interested in people and responded to hand signals.

"Based on these observations, it appeared as if Hvaldimir arrived in Norway by crossing over from Russian waters, where it is presumed he was held in captivity," it said.