MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian frigate Ladny has freed the Arctic Sea cargo ship in the Atlantic without firing a single shot and arrested eight alleged hijackers, Russia's defense minister said on Tuesday.

"The hijackers boarded the Arctic Sea, threatened the crew with weapons and demanded that their orders be followed. The Arctic Sea was following a route toward the African continent with all communications and navigation equipment shut down, as ordered by the hijackers," Anatoly Serdyukov reported to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

The eight detainees are from Estonia, Latvia and Russia. None of the crew was injured in the operation, the Russian minister said.