Kehinde Fajobi
On Thursday, Britain announced its largest sanctions to date against Russia’s “shadow fleet” of tankers, which have been used to evade Western oil export restrictions following the invasion of Ukraine.
The latest measures prohibit 18 ships from accessing UK ports and maritime services, bringing the total number of sanctioned vessels to 43.
Experts highlight that this so-called ghost fleet operates under unclear ownership or without adequate insurance, enabling the Kremlin to continue oil exports despite sanctions and a global price cap.
The UK has also accused these vessels of threatening the environment and coastal areas due to their blatant disregard for safety regulations.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) stated that these sanctions aim to “starve Putin’s war machine of crucial revenues.”
The FCDO noted, “A significant number of the ships targeted by the UK to date have been forced to sit idling, uselessly, outside ports.”
Foreign Secretary David Lammy emphasised his commitment to restricting the Kremlin’s operations, declaring, “I have made it my personal mission to constrain the Kremlin, tightening the net around Putin and his mafia state using every tool at my disposal.”
However, a recent report from the Kyiv School of Economics revealed that the volume of Russian oil exported via shadow tankers had nearly doubled, reaching 4.1 million barrels a day in the year leading up to June 2024.
According to the report, 70 percent of Russian oil exports by sea are now conducted using ghost tankers, indicating that the sanctions have had limited impact on the flow of Russian oil.
Among the vessels targeted in the new sanctions package are ships owned by Sovcomflot, Russia’s largest shipping company. Additionally, the UK foreign ministry has imposed sanctions on four LNG tankers and the Russian gas company Rusgazdobycha JSC.