UK authorises military to board Russian shadow fleet tankers

Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Thursday that he had given the green light for the military to board and detain Russian ships in British waters, aiming to disrupt a network of vessels his government claims is helping Moscow export oil in defiance of Western sanctions.

The decision follows moves by other European countries, like France, Belgium, and Sweden, to ramp up efforts to seize Russia’s so-called shadow fleet of tankers that Moscow uses to finance its four-year war against Ukraine.

Starmer said he backed the more aggressive action against the vessels, believing Russian President Vladimir Putin was probably “rubbing his hands” over the sharp increase in oil prices fueled by the U.S.-Israel war with Iran.

“That is why, in my strong view, we should go after the ⁠shadow fleet even harder,” Starmer said at a meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force Summit in Helsinki on Thursday. “Together we ​must close off critical sea routes to this vital trade to keep up the pressure on Putin.”

Britain provided intelligence and logistics ​support this year to the French and U.S. military, who detained Russian vessels. But Starmer’s announcement is the first time that British forces have been authorised to board Russian ships.

Downing Street said British military and law enforcement officials have been ​preparing to board Russian vessels that do not surrender, are armed, or use high-tech pervasive surveillance to evade capture.

Once the ​ships are boarded, Downing Street said criminal proceedings may be brought against the owners, operators and crew, for breaches of sanctions legislation.

A British official ‌said ⁠at least a dozen Russian sanctioned vessels had been passing through the Channel – the narrow stretch of water separating Britain and France – each month, on average, over the last year.

The British authorisation to board Russian ships may mean these vessels will avoid the Channel, one of the world’s most vital shipping lanes, forcing them to take longer, more expensive journeys, the official said.

Russia’s ​reliance on the shadow fleet has ​allowed it to keep ⁠exporting oil without complying with Western restrictions imposed after its full‑scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

European attempts to maintain pressure on Russia took a hit this month when President Donald Trump’s administration granted countries a 30-day waiver to purchase sanctioned Russian goods stuck at sea, aiming to stabilize global energy markets shaken by the Iran war.

Britain has placed sanctions on 544 Russian shadow fleet vessels.

About three-quarters of Russia’s crude oil is transported by these ships, Britain estimates.

IIn January, British forces assisted the United States in seizing a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the North Atlantic, and later that month, they provided tracking and monitoring support for a French mission to board a sanctioned Russian oil tanker in the western Mediterranean.

Russia’s shadow fleet vessels typically have opaque ownership structures and have raised concern about environmental risks, with poorly regulated, ageing ​tankers prone to spills, mechanical failures and leaks, threatening marine ecosystems.