France and the UK intercepted the Tagor, a sanctioned vessel traveling from Murmansk, in international waters west of Brittany on Sunday.
11:55 AM
France announced the detention of a suspected Russian oil tanker in the Atlantic on Sunday, marking the latest seizure targeting Moscow's "shadow fleet" of vessels operating in violation of international sanctions.
The Tagor was boarded on Sunday morning in international waters more than 400 nautical miles west of Brittany with support from the United Kingdom and other partners, according to French President Emmanuel Macron. The vessel was traveling from Murmansk in north-west Russia when it was intercepted.
Macron announced the operation in a post on X on Monday, accompanied by a video showing commandos descending from a helicopter onto the ship. "It is unacceptable that boats skirt international sanctions, violate the law of the sea and finance" Moscow's activities, Macron wrote, according to reports of his statement.
The interception represents part of broader international efforts by nations supporting Ukraine to disrupt Russian oil exports that help finance President Vladimir Putin's war. The operation was conducted in international waters in the Atlantic Ocean.
The Tagor is suspected of being part of Russia's sanctions-busting shadow fleet, a network of vessels used to circumvent economic restrictions imposed on Moscow. The seizure follows a pattern of similar operations aimed at enforcing compliance with international sanctions regimes targeting Russian energy exports.
French authorities confirmed the vessel was subject to international sanctions at the time of its detention.
Ukrainian drones hit Primorsk, Russia's largest Baltic oil export facility, and two alleged sanctions-violating tankers in overnight strikes Sunday.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard Navy said it seized two container vessels for maritime violations as tensions escalate over competing blockades in the strategic waterway.
Iran's IRGC captured an oil tanker Friday while US forces disabled three Iranian vessels attempting to enter Iranian ports, escalating maritime tensions.
The USS Spruance disabled the M/V Touska after its crew ignored warnings about a US naval blockade in the Arabian Sea.
Alexei Mordashov's vessel Nord sailed through the blockaded waterway after maintenance in Dubai, with neither Iran nor the US objecting.
Pentagon says Navy forces detained the M/T Tifani, a sanctioned vessel carrying Iranian crude, as ceasefire talks face uncertainty.