Fresh UK sanctions unleashed against Russian ‘shadow fleet’ of oil tankers

The UK on Thursday (17 October) unleashed the largest package of sanctions to date against Putin’s shadow fleet of oil tankers.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) said 18 more shadow fleet ships will be barred from UK ports and unable to access world-leading British maritime services, bringing the total number of oil tankers sanctioned to 43. 

“The shadow fleet seeks to undermine sanctions and poses a clear and present danger. Environmental risks, such as oil spills, on our coastlines as a result of its flagrant violation of basic safety standards, but also risks to the security of global trade – the lifeblood of economic growth,” it said in a statement.  

At the European Political Community Summit in July, the Prime Minister announced the shadow fleet call to action. Today the US and Canada have joined 44 European countries plus the EU in working together to tackle the risks posed by the shadow fleet. 

“The UK’s relentless action against the shadow fleet is putting grit into the system and starving Putin’s war machine of crucial revenues. The oil tankers targeted today have transported an estimated $4.9 billion in the last year alone,” FCDO said. 

“A significant number of the ships targeted by the UK to date have been forced to sit idling uselessly outside ports across the world, unable to continue pouring money into Putin’s war chest.”

Alongside action against the shadow fleet, the UK is sanctioning four more LNG tankers and Russian gas company Rusgazdobycha JSC. 

“We are continuing to ratchet up pressure on the beleaguered Russian gas industry, with flagship company Gazprom posting a significant net loss of $6.9 billion in 2023 – its first annual loss in more than 20 years,” FCDO added. 

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, said: “We must combat malign Russian activity at every turn, whether illicit tactics to bolster Putin’s war chest, their use of cyber-attacks or barbarism on the front line in Ukraine. 

The UK is leading the charge against Putin’s desperate and dangerous attempts to cling on to his energy revenues, with his shadow fleet placing coastlines across Europe and the world in jeopardy. 

I have made it my personal mission to constrain the Kremlin, closing the net around Putin and his mafia state using every tool at my disposal.”

This new shadow fleet package comes in the weeks following recent UK actions to sanction both Russian cyber-crime gang Evil Corp, and Russian troops found to be using chemical weapons on the front lines in Ukraine. It represents the latest in a drumbeat of activity, with each package designed to target a distinct aspect of Russia’s malign behavior and reinforce the UK’s commitment to global security and the rule of law.

Note: The full list of 18 Russian oil tankers and 4 liquified natural gas tankers can be found here.

Photo credit: Nick Fewings on Unsplash
Published: 18 October 2024