EU Navy Boards Suspected Shadow Fleet Tanker Off Sicily

Italian Navy Intercepts Suspect Tanker Near Pantelleria

According to a report by Marine Insight, the Italian Navy’s Thaon di Revel intercepted a Russia-linked oil tanker suspected of sailing under a false flag while it was en route from Cotonou, Benin, to Istanbul, passing west of the island of Pantelleria. The Italian Defence Ministry confirmed the interception, which formed part of Operation IRINI’s continuing effort to verify the flag status of vessels believed to be part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet.

The boarding echoes a similar action carried out by Operation IRINI in early August, when the sanctioned vessel MV Toa Payoh was stopped so its flag registration could be checked.

Wider Pattern of Enforcement

The Mediterranean boarding is one of several recent actions against tankers suspected of evading Western sanctions on Russian oil. France, Sweden, Belgium and Britain have each boarded or seized shadow fleet vessels found in their territorial waters. In June, French President Emmanuel Macron said French forces intercepted the tanker Deliver off Sicily for sailing in violation of maritime law, while British forces boarded the vessel Smyrtos in the English Channel earlier that month in an operation involving Royal Marines and National Crime Agency officers that lasted six hours.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the bloc’s defence ministers would discuss further steps against the shadow fleet during a meeting in Ireland.

Sanctions Scope and Russian Response

Russia’s shadow fleet relies on complex ownership structures and flags of convenience to obscure the origin of oil cargoes and circumvent sanctions that restrict Moscow’s access to Western chartering and insurance services. The EU has already sanctioned an estimated 600 to 673 vessels linked to the fleet, and a proposed 22nd sanctions package could add up to 1,500 further listings.

In July, the EU approved a mechanism permitting member states to seize and sell Russian oil carried aboard sanctioned shadow fleet tankers. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of retaliation should European countries seize Russian commercial vessels, and has previously described interceptions of Russia-linked ships as “piracy.”