Russia on Monday strongly condemned France’s detention of a Russian-owned oil tanker in the Atlantic Ocean, calling the action illegal and warning that Moscow would take steps to protect its shipping operations.According to Reuters, reacting to France’s seizure of the tanker Tagore, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia considered the move illegal.“We consider such actions illegal,” Peskov said. He said detaining the ship “borders on international terrorism”.The Kremlin also said Russia is taking measures to ensure the safety of maritime cargo transportation and will continue to do so in light of the latest incident.
Tanker on suspected sanctions violation
The sharp reaction came after France announced the detention of a tanker, the Tagore, on suspicion of being part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” used to circumvent Western sanctions imposed over the Ukraine war.French President Emmanuel Macron said the ship had been intercepted in international waters in the Atlantic with the support of Britain and other partners.According to French officials, the tanker had departed from Murmansk in northwestern Russia and was heading towards Cameroon when it was stopped 400 nautical miles west of Brittany.Authorities said the ship was sailing under a suspected false Cameroonian flag and was being escorted by the French Navy pending further investigation.The detention has also triggered a criminal investigation in France. The Brest prosecutor’s office said it had opened an investigation into the ship’s failure to prove its nationality, the absence of a flag and its refusal to follow authorities’ orders, according to news agency AFP.The prosecutor’s office said the tanker’s Russian captain refused to follow French Navy instructions during the interception, adding that “it proved necessary to take control of the ship”.“It is unacceptable for the ships to circumvent international sanctions, violate the law of the sea and finance the war that Russia has waged against Ukraine for more than 4 years,” Macron said.
Comprehensive action against Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’
The detention is the latest in a series of actions taken by France against ships allegedly linked to Russia’s sanctions-evasion network.According to AFP, French maritime authorities said Tagore was already under EU and US sanctions and had changed flags several times before, a practice known as “flawing the flag”.Since September France boarded several other suspected Russian-linked tankers, some of whom were later released after paying fines.Western countries have imposed sanctions on hundreds of ships believed to be helping Moscow continue oil exports despite sanctions imposed after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.About 600 ships belonging to Russia’s “shadow fleet” are currently subject to EU sanctions.Russia has repeatedly criticized such actions. Russian President Vladimir Putin previously described the detention of ships belonging to Russia by Western countries as “theft”.