Russian Tankers Change Course, Defying Trump’s Deal to Bring Diesel to US
Two sanctioned tankers carrying Russian diesel under President Donald Trump’s deal with Vladimir Putin have changed course away from American ports, according to the Associated Press. At least three more have since followed, and no Russian diesel has reached the United States since the deal was struck in October.
The first three tankers turn away, a fourth may still be bound for New York
The Russian tanker Talisman, under US, UK, and EU sanctions, and the Sierra Leone-flagged Leruo, sanctioned by the UK, EU, and Canada, loaded diesel at the Baltic port of Primorsk in October and first declared the US Atlantic coast as their destination. The Leruo changed its signal to “Brazil” on 2 November, the day before the US vote, while the Talisman steered into the Mediterranean.
A third sanctioned tanker, the Beast, loaded at Primorsk on 27 October and set off signalling “Atlantic,” a sign it was bound for the US coast. The Greek-owned Agioi Fanendes appeared to be continuing toward the US but signalled only “for orders,” meaning no confirmed unloading port. “The third one, Agioi Fanendes, is set to arrive in New York this weekend,” Kpler analyst Matt Smith told the FT, adding that it would not be surprising if it diverted too.
Free ship-tracking data show three of them now moving away from the US. The Talisman was south of Sicily on 6 November, heading east at about 12 knots and signalling “for order,” according to VesselFinder. The Leruo last appeared near the Azores on 3 November, heading south-southwest with “Brazil for order” as its destination, MyShipTracking data show.
Ukraine Adds Pressure from the Other End
Ukraine adds pressure from the other end, with drones hitting Russian refineries, five of them over the past week alone. Washington, meanwhile, has loosened its own grip: Trump already waived the tariffs Congress set for buyers of Russian oil. A US market for Russian fuel would give the Kremlin both revenue and a political win.
The Russian-flagged tanker Talisman, under Western sanctions. Photo: Paul Spillane/MarineTraffic
Ukrainian Monitor Names More Tankers that Could be US-Bound
Ukrainian monitors see a wider picture. Of 49 oil-product tankers that left Russia’s Baltic and Arctic ports from 29 September and were still at sea on 3 November, eight could be considered bound for the US, Andrii Klymenko of the monitoring group at Ukraine’s Institute of Black Sea Strategic Studies wrote. He stressed this was only an assumption: the ships change their destinations in response to world media attention, and no reliable information about their cargo is public.
His list included the Agioi Fanendes and the Beast, plus six more tankers. Two of those six have since turned away. The Hanna, which had listed a yacht marina near Boston, was off the Iberian coast on 6 November, heading south for Tema in Ghana, according to VesselFinder. The Manta, under EU and UK sanctions and also once listed for the Boston-area marina, now signalled “for order” with no confirmed destination.
The Agioi Fanendes loaded about 40,000 tons of diesel at Primorsk on 22 October. Its last position on free tracking sites dates from 28 October, off the north coast of Scotland, heading west, AIS Vessel Tracker shows. Such sites often lose ships far out at sea, so the gap alone says nothing about its course.
The Russian-flagged tanker Leruo, under EU, UK, and Canadian sanctions. Photo: Erwin Willemse/MarineTraffic
Original Article: Russia promised Trump diesel. Five of its tankers turned for Brazil, Africa, and the Mediterranean instead — Euromaidan Press