President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked France after its navy intercepted another Russian-linked oil tanker, urging Europe to update its laws so such vessels can be seized, not just stopped.
“There has been another interception of a Russian tanker – thank you, France,” Zelensky said in his evening address. “It is important that Europe takes a strong step and modernizes its legislation so that such tankers can not only be stopped, but also seized.”
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“The oil Russia is so eager to use to finance its war should instead be used to finance protection against aggression,” he added.
The remarks came after France said Monday that it had detained the suspected Russian oil tanker Tagor in the Atlantic over the weekend, in the latest such operation aimed at combating Moscow’s sanctions-busting “shadow fleet.”
The Tagor was detained Sunday morning in international waters with the help of Britain and other partners, French President Emmanuel Macron said.
According to French authorities, the tanker was on its way from Murmansk in northwestern Russia when it was seized. The ship was falsely flying a Cameroonian flag and was heading toward Limbe, a seaside city in western Cameroon, a spokesperson for the maritime prefecture said.
“It is unacceptable for ships to circumvent international sanctions, violate the law of the sea, and fund the war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for more than four years,” Macron said.
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“These ships, which fail to comply with the most basic rules of maritime navigation, also pose a threat to the environment and to everyone’s safety,” he added.
Kyiv urges Europe to go further
The president said the interception showed that stronger action against Russia’s shadow fleet is possible, but argued that Europe now needs legislation allowing authorities to confiscate such vessels and their cargoes.
Ukraine has repeatedly called for tougher enforcement against Russian energy exports, saying oil revenues remain one of the Kremlin’s main sources of funding for its war.
The shadow fleet is a network of vessels used by Moscow to evade sanctions and transport Russian oil despite Western restrictions. Such ships often change flags, ownership structures and routes to avoid detection.
The Atlantic maritime prefecture said the interception took place more than 400 nautical miles west of Brittany.
“The examination of the documents confirmed doubts about the irregularity of the flag being flown,” the prefecture said.
The ship, which had 23 crew members, was being escorted by the French navy to an anchorage point for further checks, the maritime prefecture said.
Ukraine says 15 Russian refineries hit this year
In the same address, President Zelensky said Ukrainian forces had struck 15 Russian oil refineries between January and May, deepening pressure on Russia’s fuel sector.
He said Russia had already imposed bans on exports of aviation fuel and gasoline and was considering a ban on diesel exports.
“As of May, nearly 40 percent of Russia’s primary oil refining capacity is offline,” Zelensky said.
The president linked the refinery strikes and action against the shadow fleet to the same goal: reducing Moscow’s ability to finance its war.
France has intercepted several shadow fleet vessels
The Tagor was under EU and US sanctions, according to Guillaume Le Rasle, spokesman for the Atlantic maritime prefecture.
“It is a vessel that was known and tracked,” he told AFP.
“The objective of the diversion is to verify the validity of its flag,” he added.
Since September, France has boarded three other ships believed to belong to Russia’s shadow fleet. The ships were allowed to sail after their owners paid fines.
In September, the French navy boarded the Boracay, which claimed to be flagged in Benin. In January, French forces impounded another suspected Russian tanker, the Grinch, and in March, the Deyna, which sailed from Murmansk under a Mozambican flag, was detained in Marseille.
Several Western countries have imposed sanctions on hundreds of vessels in Russia’s shadow fleet since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Nearly 600 vessels suspected of being part of Russia’s shadow fleet are subject to EU sanctions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned the detention of Russia-linked vessels as “piracy.”
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