Sanctioned tankers identified in the English channel, despite UK warningspublished at 13:17 GMT
13:17 GMT
Kayleen Devlin
BBC Verify senior journalist
BBC Verify has also been following sanctioned oil tankers travelling through the English Channel despite warnings by UK ministers that shadow fleet vessels can legally be stopped.
Of the three that we’ve idenfitied, location data from vessel-tracking website MarineTraffic indicate that both the Ariadne and White Condor I are currently passing through the Channel.
Data for White Condor I, which is falsely flying the flag of the Caribbean island Aruba, put the tanker is to the south of Portsmouth, travelling east.
Before entering the Channel, the tanker stopped at a Brazilian port in mid-December, unloading its cargo. Prior to that, its tracking data indicates White Condor I had come from a port in Russia.
Tracking data for Ariadne, which is listed in Russia’s maritime registry, places the ship a short distance behind the White Condor, also sailing east.
MarineTraffic data indicates Ariadne is carrying cargo. It shows the tanker docked at a Russian port in mid-November, before travelling to Egypt and then heading north towards the Channel.
BBC Verify has also identified a third tanker, Anastasiia, sailing in the Channel. This vessel is sanctioned by the US, but not by the UK.
The Ministry of Defence has told BBC Verify that “deterring, disrupting and degrading the Russian shadow fleet is a priority”, but declined to comment on “specific operational planning or give a running commentary on live maritime traffic websites”.