Russia’s ‘Shadow Fleet’ Grows to 600 Vessels, EU Reports
The term “shadow fleet“, sometimes also referred to as “dark fleet” or “grey fleet”, has been a recurring theme in European Union statements on Russia. It is not a legal category but rather a working label for tankers that move oil from sanctioned producers outside Western shipping, insurance, and financial systems.
According to the policy glossary Model Diplomat, similar networks have long served Iran and Venezuela. The Russian version dates back to December 2022, when the EU banned seaborne imports of Russian crude, followed by a ban on refined products in February 2023. At the same time, the G7 and the EU introduced a price cap on Russian oil sold to third countries.
The cap did not seek to stop Russian oil reaching the market but rather barred Western companies from shipping, insuring, or financing cargoes sold above the set price, while buyers such as India and China could keep receiving barrels. Maria Shagina, a sanctions expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, has described it as a deliberate trade-off: Lower Russian revenues without a global price spike.
Characteristics of Russia’s ‘Shadow Fleet’
The tankers involved are typically 15 years old or more and were often bought second-hand as the cap came into force. Ownership tends to sit in single-ship companies registered in places such as the UAE, Hong Kong, or the Marshall Islands. Western governments say the vessels frequently change flags and registries and carry insurance of uncertain quality. Most lack cover from the International Group of P&I Clubs, the mutual insurers that cover the bulk of the world’s ocean-going fleet.
In January, AFP reported that tankers linked to Russian and Chinese trade had been registering in the Cook Islands for as little as a few thousand dollars. At the end of August, 45 “shadow” vessels carrying Russian fuel were sailing under false flags, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a Finland-based think tank.
EU Enforcement Efforts
The EU has sanctioned about 600 ships, while an internal EU document cited by Keystone-SDA in October put the wider network at up to 1,400 tankers. The bloc has also pressed flag states to withdraw registration. Kallas has said hundreds of ships have been deflagged as a result.
At sea, Operation Irini, the EU naval mission created in 2020 to enforce the UN arms embargo on Libya, now boards suspect tankers under Article 110 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Original Article: What is Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’? — Brusselssignal