The incident highlights the “notorious shadow fleet” that represents tens of billions of euros for Russia’s budget and finances an estimated 40% of Russia’s war effort, Macron said.
Original Article: Macron says a tanker off France is linked to Russia’s shadow oil fleet — Associated Press
French Authorities Intervene to Stop Russian-Linked Tanker ‘Pushpa‘ Off Atlantic Coast
French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday that an oil tanker immobilized off the French Atlantic coast had committed “very serious wrongdoings” and linked it to Russia’s shadow fleet, which is avoiding Western sanctions over Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
The tanker, known as “Pushpa” or “Boracay,” was sailing last week off the coast of Denmark and was cited by European naval experts as possibly being involved in drone flights over the country. French naval forces forcibly boarded the ship a few days ago at the request of prosecutors who suspected wrongdoing, a military official said Wednesday.
Investigation Underway into Crew’s Refusal to Cooperate
A judicial investigation has been opened into the crew’s “refusal to cooperate” and “failure to justify the nationality of the vessel,” according to the prosecutor’s office in the western French city of Brest. The ship was ordered to stay in place pending further investigation, the military official said.
French naval forces boarded the ship again Wednesday to provide food and fuel to the crew aboard, according to the official, who was not authorized to be publicly named discussing an ongoing investigation. The ship left the Russian oil terminal in Primorsk near Saint Petersburg on Sept. 20, sailed off the coast of Denmark, and has stayed off the coast of the French western port of Saint-Nazaire since Sunday, according to the Marine Traffic monitoring website.
Macron Links Tanker to Russia’s Shadow Fleet
Macron suggested it was stopped by French authorities’ “intervention,” saying: “I think it’s a good thing that this work has been done and that we’ve been able to stop it.” He didn’t elaborate on the specific wrongdoings committed by the crew. The Russian Embassy in Paris didn’t respond to a request for comment.
The incident highlights the “notorious shadow fleet” that represents tens of billions of euros for Russia’s budget and finances an estimated 40% of Russia’s war effort, Macron said.
Original Article: Macron says a tanker off France is linked to Russia’s shadow oil fleet — Associated Press