Europe’s Standoff with Russia’s Shadow Fleet: A Growing Concern
On the front line of Europe’s standoff with Russia‘s sanction-busting shadow fleet, coastguards are regularly coming in contact with vessels that they suspect are transporting oil. The term “shadow fleet” commonly refers to hundreds of tankers used to bypass a price cap on Russian oil exports.
After the Kremlin launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, many Western countries imposed sanctions on Russian energy, which Moscow is accused of dodging by shipping oil on aged tankers often with obscure ownership or insurance. Some “shadow” ships are even suspected of undersea sabotage, illicit drone launches or “spoofing” their location data.
The Rise of Stateless Vessels
A growing network of “shadow” ships are sailing without a valid national flag, which can render vessels stateless and without proper insurance. This is a troubling trend, given many are practically “floating rust buckets”, says senior maritime intelligence analyst at Windward AI, Michelle Wiese Bockmann. If there is an accident, like a billion-dollar oil spill, “good luck with trying to find somebody responsible to pick up any cost”.
Driven by record sanctions and tighter enforcement, the number of falsely flagged ships globally has more than doubled this year to over 450, most of them tankers, according to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) database.
Estonia’s Navy on High Alert
The head of Estonia’s navy, Commodore Ivo Värk, says they have seen dozens of such passing vessels this year whereas they used to see just one or two. The rise is alarming, he tells me, as we talk in his office overlooking the Gulf of Finland, a narrow gateway to the major Russian oil terminals of Ust-Luga and Primorsk.
What’s more, he suggests, it’s brazen: “There’s no secret made about it.” We spot the tanker Unity on the MarineTraffic app, the day we board an Estonian (British-built) Minehunter that is also used in Nato’s Baltic Sentry patrols to protect critical infrastructure.
Investigating the Shadow Fleet
The BBC has investigated the history of one such ship, the Unity. Tracking data shows that Unity has passed through the English Channel four times in the last twelve months, including journeys between Russian ports and India; a key oil customer that has not signed up to the price cap. Originally known as Ocean Explorer, the tanker was built in 2009 and flew the flag of Singapore for more than a decade.
Back in 2019, it was named in a UN report for alleged involvement in a ship-to-ship transfer with a vessel that had been sanctioned for its role in transporting fuel to North Korea – which is among other countries affected by international sanctions.
Original Article: On the front line of Europe’s standoff with Russia’s shadow fleet — BBC