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DONATE NOW<\/a><\/p>\n The shadow fleet\u2014originally pioneered by\u00a0Iran and rapidly expanded by\u00a0Russia after its full-scale invasion of\u00a0Ukraine\u2014now numbers nearly 700\u00a0ageing vessels dedicated to\u00a0transporting embargoed\u00a0oil.<\/p>\n These ships rely on\u00a0shell companies, frequent name and flag changes, spoofed tracking data, and ship-to-ship transfers to\u00a0evade detection. Until recently, this allowed Russia to\u00a0keep exporting large volumes of\u00a0crude to\u00a0China and India despite sanctions, The Economist wrote.<\/p>\n That model is\u00a0now faltering. Western governments have shifted from targeting intermediaries to\u00a0directly blacklisting tankers themselves. In\u00a02025\u00a0alone, 623\u00a0vessels were added to\u00a0sanctions lists, compared with 225\u00a0the year before. Around 40% of\u00a0tankers that carried Russian oil last year are now sanctioned by\u00a0at\u00a0least one government, cutting them off from insurance, certification, and compliant banking systems.<\/p>\n Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said coordinated international pressure on\u00a0Russia\u2019s shadow fleet has already forced<\/a> at\u00a0least 20% of\u00a0its vessels to\u00a0halt operations, marking a\u00a0significant blow to\u00a0Moscow\u2019s ability to\u00a0export oil and finance the\u00a0war.<\/p>\n Read more<\/p>\n How Many Tankers Does the Russian Shadow Fleet Have?<\/a><\/p>\n \n Dec 05, 2025 19:07\n <\/p>\n At\u00a0the same time, loopholes in\u00a0flag registration are closing. Under international law, ships without a\u00a0valid national flag are effectively stateless and can be\u00a0boarded or\u00a0seized. After pressure from the US\u00a0and UK, permissive registries such as\u00a0Panama and Liberia began delisting sanctioned vessels, according to\u00a0The Economist.<\/p>\n Recently, the French Navy had successfully boarded<\/a> and detained<\/a> the captain of\u00a0one such oil tanker coming from Russia, which was suspected of\u00a0flying a\u00a0false flag and violating international sanctions as\u00a0a\u00a0part of\u00a0Russia\u2019s shadow fleet.<\/p>\n As\u00a0a\u00a0result, hundreds of\u00a0shadow tankers bounced between flags\u2014some changing registration up\u00a0to\u00a0six times in\u00a0a\u00a0year\u2014before turning to\u00a0forged certificates. Western navies have increasingly used this legal vulnerability to\u00a0detain ships, including high-profile seizures in\u00a0the Mediterranean, Baltic, and North Atlantic.<\/p>\n Operational costs are also rising sharply. Sanctioned tankers must take longer routes, conduct more mid-sea transfers, and spend more time idling offshore as\u00a0buyers and ports grow wary.<\/p>\n According to\u00a0shipping data cited by\u00a0The Economist, tankers become up\u00a0to\u00a070% less productive after being blacklisted by\u00a0the\u00a0US. This inefficiency has pushed freight costs higher and contributed to\u00a0a\u00a0widening discount on\u00a0Russia\u2019s Urals crude, now trading as\u00a0much as\u00a0$27 below Brent\u00a0\u2014its deepest discount since early 2023.<\/p>\n Read more<\/p>\n Seized by\u00a0the US, Linked to\u00a0Russia\u2014Who Really Owns the Shadow Tanker Marinera?<\/a><\/p>\n \n Jan 08, 2026 14:32\n <\/p>\n Ukraine has added a\u00a0military dimension to\u00a0the pressure. Since late 2025, Ukrainian forces have struck at\u00a0least nine tankers linked to\u00a0the shadow fleet using naval and aerial drones and sea mines, including attacks far from Ukrainian waters.<\/p>\n For example, Earlier this month, four Greek-managed oil tankers heading to\u00a0load Kazakh crude at\u00a0the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal off Russia\u2019s Black Sea coast were hit<\/a> by\u00a0drones.<\/p>\n These strikes have driven war-risk insurance premiums in\u00a0the Russian Black Sea to\u00a0around 1% of\u00a0a\u00a0ship\u2019s value\u2014far above normal levels\u2014further inflating costs for Russia\u2019s oil exports.<\/p>\n Facing these pressures, Russia has begun bringing more shadow-fleet vessels directly under its own flag. Since mid-December, dozens of\u00a0sanctioned tankers have appeared on\u00a0Russia\u2019s maritime registry, signalling a\u00a0shift toward tighter state control. But this comes at\u00a0a\u00a0price: Russian-flagged tankers are effectively uninsurable, and protecting them with naval escorts would drain additional resources.<\/p>\n The Economist concludes that while Russia may try to\u00a0militarise and formalise its shadow fleet, the economics are turning against\u00a0it. As\u00a0sanctions, enforcement, and security risks compound, the system that once kept Russian oil flowing is\u00a0increasingly expensive, inefficient, and exposed\u2014raising the prospect that one small regulatory detail, flags and insurance, could slowly sink the fleet that props up\u00a0the Kremlin\u2019s war economy.<\/p>\n Previously, it\u00a0was reported that German authorities had begun barring<\/a> ships linked to\u00a0Russia from entering the country\u2019s territorial waters in\u00a0the Baltic and North Seas.<\/p>\n![\"How](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/88a20ce286132af6a06d4f30b3df4e92.jpg\")
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