French Authorities Release Seized Russian ‘Shadow Fleet’ Tanker After Fine Paid
France has released an oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia’s sanctions-busting “shadow fleet” after its owner paid a fine. The vessel, named Grinch, was seized by French forces in the Mediterranean in January and then diverted to the port city of Marseille.
According to French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, the tanker was “leaving French waters” on Tuesday having paid a penalty of “several million euros”. The exact amount the vessel’s owner was fined remains unclear. The tanker had set sail from Murmansk in northern Russia and was flying under a Comoros flag, officials said.
The Grinch is believed to be part of Moscow’s so-called shadow fleet, a clandestine network of tankers used to evade Western sanctions on Russian oil exports by using aged tankers with obscure ownership or insurance. Many Western countries imposed sanctions on Russian oil after it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Shadow Fleets: A Growing Concern
Shadow fleets are becoming increasingly common as a growing number of tankers transporting Russian, Iranian and Venezuelan oil use various methods to conceal their identities and contravene Western sanctions. While estimates vary, data from the monitoring group TankerTrackers.com suggests the fleet currently consists of 1,468 vessels, roughly triple its size at the time of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago.
The vessels tend to be old and are often poorly maintained. Details of ownership and management are deliberately opaque – names, identification numbers and flags are frequently changed. Efforts have been stepped up to tackle shadow fleets in recent months, with a number of sanctioned tankers being seized.
International Cooperation Against Shadow Fleets
In January, British armed forces supported a US operation to seize a Russian-flagged tanker in the Atlantic that US officials said had broken sanctions by carrying oil for Venezuela and Russia. Moscow denounced the move, saying no state had the right to use force against vessels properly registered in other states’ jurisdictions.
The incident highlights the international cooperation needed to combat shadow fleets. As Barrot noted, “Circumventing European sanctions comes at a price. Russia will no longer be able to finance its war with impunity through a ghost fleet off our coasts.”
Original Article: France releases seized Russian ‘shadow fleet’ tanker after fine paid — BBC