Transcript of the beginning of the meeting:

Vladimir Putin: Mr Levitin, how is the situation with the ice-bound vessels in the Far East unfolding?

Igor Levitin: Mr Putin, since my previous report the situation has been developing as follows. On January 4 at 2:00 a.m. the Admiral Makarov icebreaker approached them. It will work to free the three vessels, with the fish processing mother ship, the Sodruzhestvo (Commonwealth), among them. In total, 432 people were awaiting the Admiral Makarov’s arrival.

I should add that, yesterday a distress call was sent by the Mys Yelizavety (Cape Elizabeth) vessel, which has 78 people on board. She had become caught in drift ice and was at risk of being smashed onto the rocks. This is why the decision was made to redirect the rescue operation toward that vessel so as to prevent her from being smashed onto the rocks.

Vladimir Putin: If I understand you correctly, the Admiral Makarov icebreaker was going to rescue the three ships, which have been stuck there since when, exactly?

Igor Levitin: Since December 30 when we received the signal.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, since the 30th. And the icebreaker had to change its route and turn to rescue another fishing craft, the Mys Yelizavety.

Igor Levitin: Precisely. The Mys Yelizavety.

Vladimir Putin: Didn’t you prohibit it from setting sail?

Igor Levitin: After the 30th, when we saw the situation and ice conditions in the Gulf of Sakhalin we advised all vessels not to put to sea in the Gulf of Sakhalin because we understood the situation there to be very grave.

Vladimir Putin: When did you issue that recommendation?

Igor Levitin: On the 31st after receiving information from the meteorological office that ice conditions there were very bad.

Vladimir Putin: And when did the Mys Yelizavety put to sea?

Igor Levitin: The Mys Yelizavety did not set sail before January 1...

Vladimir Putin: After your warning.

Igor Levitin: ... after our warning. That is why we had to adjust the course of our rescue operation.

Vladimir Putin: She put to sea and found herself in difficulties.

Igor Levitin: She found herself in difficulties, she sent a distress signal and we were forced to step in and deal with that vessel. The Admiral Makarov is working on it now, we can contact the icebreaker and if you could...

Vladimir Putin: We’ll talk. The icebreaker should be first on the line. Hello? Captain Antokhin (Captain of the Admiral Makarov icebreaker Gennady Antokhin), good afternoon. How are you getting on? What is the situation? Will you be able to free the vessel? Understood. Captain Antokhin, how long will you need to help that vessel, the Mys Yelizavety, and then reach the group of vessels led by the Sodruzhestvo? Understood. So, you need at least 10 hours to reach them? As a minimum, right? Maybe 15 hours? I see, understood. I want to wish you success, Captain Antokhin. Please, convey my best wishes and New Year greetings to the crew, even though you have to work through the holidays. I understand. You are in contact with the Sodruzhestvo, aren’t you? I will call them and talk to them. All the best. Good bye. All the best, Captain Antokhin. Bye.

Are they also on the line?

Igor Levitin: Yes, they should be.

Igor Levitin: We have established communications with the fish processing vessel. I’ll talk to them now and then we’ll continue.

Igor Levitin: I should mention that the ice hummocks there are almost two metres high. According to the forecast, the weather is set to worsen and the winds will pick up after January 5. Therefore, we plan to complete this operation before the 5th, but dealing with this vessel is likely to cause delays.

Vladimir Putin: I would say that the icebreaker will not reach the Sodruzhestvo before tomorrow morning, Moscow time, at the earliest. Then the operation to lead the other vessels out into the open sea will take some time.

Igor Levitin: There is one more difficulty. The icebreaker is 26 meters wide while the fish processing vessel is 28. This is why a second icebreaker is working to help lead the vessels out... That’s how it stands now. I want to add that there are no problems with food or water supplies either on the fish processing vessel or onboard the other vessels; no distress signals have been sent and they are all operating normally.

Vladimir Putin: How many people did you say are involved? About 600?

Igor Levitin: There are 432 people on the three vessels and 340 on the fish processing vessel. There were 10 vessels in total with 600 people on board when I reported back to you on the 30^th. However, to date, seven vessels have managed to free themselves, while these three vessels cannot. The situation in the gulf is being aggravated by strong winds of 30 m/s.

Vladimir Putin: Yes, the captain said that there are strong winds, that the ice is a mess and that its compaction continues.

Yes, thank you (answers the phone).

Hello, Captain Zatelepa (Captain of the Sodruzhestvo fish processing vessel Grigory Zatelepa).  Good afternoon, Captain Zatelepa! What is the situation out there, how are you?

Tolerable? Did the winds and storm frighten you?

I see. You mean you are still being dragged towards them? Things will ease up with the ebb tide.

Captain Zatelepa, I have just now talked with the captain of the Admiral Makarov, Captain Antokhin. You are in touch with him, I know, he said. He will need some time to finish work on the Mys Yelizavety. She is in distress too, and after that... It will take about two hours to finish on the Mys Yelizavety and then the icebreaker will chart a course towards you. They promised they would reach you by morning Moscow time. But you have enough water and food, right?

Yeah. They will help you; just hold on for one more day, or even less. And who arranged the performance? Captain Zatelepa, who put on the show? For New Year’s?

You did it yourselves? That’s great.

I would like to wish you a happy New Year; please pass that on to everybody, I wish you all the best. I hope your time in captivity will soon be over.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Wishing you and all the fishermen the very best for this New Year, and big catches as well.

All the best, good bye.

Igor Levitin: For now they have everything they need.

Vladimir Putin: They are in good spirits. Yesterday they found themselves being dragged towards the rocks, but everything is fine now.

Igor Levitin: Mr Putin, I am handling the situation, I will report back to you about everything myself.

Vladimir Putin: All right, please keep a close watch on this. After all, there are so many people on board.

Igor Levitin: We have rescue and air forces, including helicopters, in a state of readiness, so we are prepared for any developments that might arise. There are a lot of people involved.

Vladimir Putin: We all know how helicopters work, how dependent they are on weather conditions, which is why you need to use vessels.

Igor Levitin: Yes, we are using them.