EU Forces Board Oil Tanker Suspected Of Sailing Under False Flag In Mediterranean Sea

The European Union has expanded its sanctions enforcement against Russia by allowing its naval mission in the Indian Ocean to board ships suspected of being part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on July 22 that member states had authorised Operation EUNAVFOR ATALANTA, the EU’s anti-piracy mission operating off Somalia and in the western Indian Ocean, to carry out flag verification boardings of suspected shadow fleet vessels.

The inspections will be conducted in the same way as those carried out by Operation EUNAVFOR MED IRINI in the Mediterranean.

The decision follows the July 20 boarding of the Cameroon-flagged oil tanker MV SOUTH STAR in international waters in the Mediterranean.

The vessel was boarded by Operation IRINI for flag verification after it was suspected of sailing under a false flag in breach of international maritime law.

“We’re turning up the pressure on Russia’s shadow fleet,” Kallas said in a post on X.

She said the MV SOUTH STAR had been boarded for flag verification and added that “every illicit voyage helps sustain Russia’s war machine.” She said the EU was “matching our sanctions with action at sea.”

Kallas also said the decision to give Operation ATALANTA similar powers “further tightens the net.”

Operation IRINI confirmed that its personnel boarded the tanker in international waters. Photos released by the EU showed military helicopters and speedboats surrounding the vessel during the operation.

According to marine traffic monitoring data, the MV SOUTH STAR was in the western Mediterranean as of July 22.

The tanker left the Tunisian port of Rades on July 10 and was due to return there on July 22. It was not immediately clear whether the inspection was still underway 48 hours after the boarding.

Kallas said the latest operation marked the fourth successful boarding of a suspected shadow fleet vessel by Operation IRINI.

The EU says Russia’s shadow fleet consists of vessels with opaque ownership used to transport Russian oil while avoiding Western sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine.

Brussels has sanctioned nearly 600 ships that it believes are part of the network.

Several European countries have also boarded ships suspected of being part of Russia’s shadow fleet after they entered their territorial waters.

France, Sweden, Belgium and the United Kingdom are among the countries that have recently carried out such inspections.

The expanded naval powers come as EU countries work to finalise the bloc’s 21st sanctions package.

The European External Action Service, led by Kallas, has proposed around 250 new listings targeting entities that the EU says are helping Russia continue its war against Ukraine.

If approved, it would be the largest number of listings included in a single EU sanctions package since 2022.

Russia has criticised such actions. President Vladimir Putin has previously described interceptions of Russia-linked vessels as “piracy.”

Earlier this year, Russian presidential aide and Maritime Board head Nikolay Patrushev said Western countries had created the term “shadow fleet” to justify what he described as interference with merchant vessels operating in Russia’s interests and to make it harder to transport Russian cargo.

References: The Moscow Times, Kyiv Independent