The missing Russian vessel Arctic Sea was hijacked by group of Estonians, Latvians and Russians, and was freed by the Russian Navy, the Russian defense chief said on Tuesday.

Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev (L) listens to Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov during their meeting in the southern city of Astrakhan August 17, 2009. [Xinhua]

The Russian Navy has arrested eight people in connection with the hijacking, and the crew was rescued without a single shot, Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was quoted by news agencies as saying.

The Maltese-flagged Arctic Sea set off from Finland on July 23 carrying a large load of timber, and was due to arrive at the Algerian port of Bejaia on Aug. 4.

Contact with the vessel was disrupted on July 28, after masked men claiming to be police briefly seized the ship in the Baltic Sea on July 24, media reports said.

The minister confirmed on Tuesday that the vessel was seized in the Baltic Sea on July 24 by a group of hijackers and had been moving in the direction of Africa with dysfunctional navigation equipment.

The Arctic Sea was reported to have been found 300 miles (480 km) off Cape Verde islands on Monday, with its crew alive who were later taken to a Russian warship.

Undated photo of the missing Russian vessel Arctic Sea. [Xinhua]

(Xinhua News Agency August 17, 2009)