More than 120 sanctioned Russian tankers have sailed through UK waters since Sir Keir Starmer announced new powers to seize so-called “shadow fleet” ships, The i Paper can reveal.
While ministers insist Britain is prepared to act against Vladimir Putin’s illicit oil trade, tankers sanctioned by the Foreign Office for fuelling Russia’s war in Ukraine, thus termed as the “shadow fleet”, have continued to pass near UK shores.
In January, the UK strengthened its legal position to detain sanctioned Russian ships near its waters and on 25 March, Starmer authorised military personnel to carry out forced boardings.
The Prime Minister said he was going after Putin’s Shadow Fleet “even harder”, and that Vladimir Putin “should be in no doubt” that the UK will fight against Moscow’s illicit network of tankers.
Since then, no ships have been seized while an average of at least four sanctioned tankers have sailed through the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone each day, according to data provided by Starboard Maritime Intelligence.
Of those, 47 sanctioned tankers entered the Britain’s territorial waters – a buffer zone of 12 nautical miles from the coast where authorities have increased jurisdiction to act.
At the time of publication, at least three suspected Shadow tankers sanctioned by the Foreign Office were sailing through the Channel. One of them, Rangler, had previously diverted course following Starmer’s proposed crackdown in March but, in the face of no action, had returned to taking the shorter route through the Channel.
At the time of writing three sanctioned Russian vessels were in the Channel (Starboard Maritime Intelligence)The tankers are largely suspected of carrying Russian crude oil illicitly around the globe in order to fund Russian’s invasion of Ukraine. But some have been accused of transporting military goods and loitering over critical UK undersea infrastructure.
The UK has some 45 undersea cables connecting Britain to other countries that carry essential power supplies and vast quantities of data including financial information
During the same period, at least five Russian naval vessels – including one submarine – have been spotted in UK waters as an emboldened Kremlin continues to test Downing Street’s rhetoric.
It came after Defence Secretary John Healey said a days-long Royal Navy operation had watched an Akula attack submarine and two Gugi spy submarines as they spent time over “critical infrastructure relevant to us and our allies” before heading north out of UK waters.
Healey added there was “no evidence that there has been any damage” to UK cables and pipelines, but any attempt to damage the infrastructure would not be tolerated and would have “serious consequences”.
But military, legal and diplomatic constraints appear to be slowing any decisive intervention.
Caption: Image of Naval helicopters and ships HMS Somerset, HMS St Albans, HMS Mersey and RFA Tideforce were dispatched to shadow four Russian Navy vessels, including a surfaced submarine, in the English Channel and North Sea. Photographer: Royal NavyProvider: UK MOD Crown copyright Source: Royal NavyJohn Foreman, the UK’s Defence Attache to Moscow unto 2022, said the Prime Minister had shown his “bland disingenuousness” when it comes to defence.
“He talks a good game, promises much, but as with much of his premiership does little in practice,” Foreman told The i Paper. “The voters, our allies and our adversaries see right through him.”
Last week, this newspaper revealed that a Kremlin Amur Class Repair Ship PM-82, a 122m floating workshop designed to maintain Vladimir Putin’s Baltic fleet of ships, had loitered near to offshore windfarms around 50km from UK shores.
While the UK has yet to seize ships, earlier the US forces seized a tanker, the Marinera, in the North Atlantic, supported by the British troops.
Last December, Finnish police seized a vessel sailing from Russia on suspicion of sabotaging undersea cables, the Kremlin denied the allegation.
‘Not entirely ready’
For months, officials in Whitehall and the Armed Forces have worked to establish the legal framework required to intercept vessels suspected of fueling Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
Behind the scenes, naval units and special forces teams are on standby with the capability to rapidly intercept and secure vessels. Yet, as previously revealed by The i Paper, the UK is not entirely ready to launch seizures due to the Government’s nervousness about the legality of operations at sea, the risk of interdictions going wrong and the need for any seizure to require sign-off at the highest level.
Both Starmer and Healey have warned sanctions ships passing through UK waters but yet none have been seized (Photo: Simon Dawson/No 10 Downing Street)More than 300 sanctioned or suspect Russian-linked ships have transited the English Channel this year, revealing a sophisticated network designed to keep oil, parts and supplies flowing despite Western sanctions.
The shadow fleet has become a lifeline for Putin’s war effort, with ships sailing under false flags in order to evade blockades and continue to make money from sanctioned oil. Around 75 per cent of Russia’s crude oil is transported by Putin’s decrepit fleet and aging fleet of ships.
The Ministry of Defence has repeatedly said: “The UK keeps maritime activity in the Channel under constant review. Any enforcement action is considered on a case-by-case basis, in accordance with international law and domestic legislation.
“We will not provide a running commentary or get into details of our decision-making process as this could compromise our ability to successfully take action against sanctioned ships, only benefitting our adversaries.”
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