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Russian oil tanker the Grinch was boarded by the French Navy. Credit: Etat Major des Arm\u00e9es via AFP.<\/p>\n
The French Navy intercepted a Russian oil tanker, the Grinch, between Spain and Morocco on Thursday morning.<\/p>\n
The operation was conducted \u201cwith the support of several of our allies\u201d, according to French President Emmanuel Macron, who shared the news on social media platform X.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThis morning, the French Navy boarded an oil tanker coming from Russia, subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag,\u201d he said, adding: \u201cThe vessel has been diverted.\u201d<\/p>\n We will not tolerate any violation.<\/p>\n This morning, the French Navy boarded an oil tanker coming from Russia, subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag.<\/p>\n The operation was conducted on the high seas in the Mediterranean,\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/zhXVdzPx1r<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) January 22, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The Russian Embassy in Paris has said that it was not informed about the Grinch\u2019s interception, according to Russian news agency TASS.<\/p>\n \u201cAt the moment, together with diplomats from the consulate general in Marseille, we are trying to find out whether there are any Russian citizens among the crew members in order to provide the necessary assistance,\u201d said the embassy.<\/p>\n The Grinch is part of Russia\u2019s \u201cshadow fleet\u201d, comprised of hundreds of aging tankers used to transport Russian oil. The vessels are unregulated and often operate under several identities, swapping flags throughout a journey, to evade Western sanctions on oil exports.<\/p>\n The vessel was reportedly travelling from the Arctic port of Murmansk in northern Russia and was flying a Comoros flag when the French Navy boarded.<\/p>\n The EU has imposed 19 packages of sanctions since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with the most recent introduced on 23 October 2025.<\/p>\n However, Moscow still sells millions of barrels of oil outside of Europe. In 2024, China imported $62.59bn (435.87bn yuan) of crude oil from Russia, while India\u2019s imports came to $52.73bn (Rs4.84tn), according to the UN COMTRADE database on international trade.<\/p>\n Macron referred to the purchasing of Russian oil in his post, commenting that \u201cthe activities of the \u2018shadow fleet\u2019 contribute to financing the war of aggression against Ukraine\u201d.<\/p>\n His comments were supported by UK Defence Secretary John Healy, who said: \u201cAlongside our allies, we are stepping up our response to shadow vessels to choke off the funds that fuel Putin\u2019s illegal invasion of Ukraine.\u201d<\/p>\n He said the UK Navy had provided \u201ctracking and monitoring\u201d and that HMS Dagger had monitored the Grinch through the Straits of Gibraltar.<\/p>\n The UK currently has sanctions imposed on 544 Russian shadow fleet vessels.<\/p>\n Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded directly to Macron on X.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is exactly the kind of resolve needed to ensure that Russian oil no longer finances Russia\u2019s war. Russian tankers operating near European shores must be stopped,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Thank you, France! Thank you, @EmmanuelMacron<\/a>! This is exactly the kind of resolve needed to ensure that Russian oil no longer finances Russia\u2019s war. Russian tankers operating near European shores must be stopped. Sanctions against the entire infrastructure of the shadow fleet\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/6t0DbJ9xS1<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Volodymyr Zelenskyy \/ \u0412\u043e\u043b\u043e\u0434\u0438\u043c\u0438\u0440 \u0417\u0435\u043b\u0435\u043d\u0441\u044c\u043a\u0438\u0439 (@ZelenskyyUa) January 22, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n The interception of the Grinch comes only months after France seized the Boracay in October 2025. It is indicative of the broader shadow fleet trend<\/a>, with Venezuela and Iran also accused of using such vessels to avoid international oil sanctions.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n Sign up for our daily news round-up!
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