Belgium seizes Russian shadow fleet tanker

Belgian forces have seized an oil tanker belonging to Russia's shadow fleet.

Source: Belgian public broadcaster RTBF, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The oil tanker was sailing off the Belgian coast when it was intercepted around midnight. It is believed to be part of the shadow fleet, a network of vessels operating outside international regulations to circumvent economic sanctions, including those targeting Russian oil exports.

According to information gathered by RTBF from several sources, Belgium arrested the oil tanker Ethera overnight. The 180-metre vessel, built in 2008, was sailing under the Guinean flag and had arrived from the English Channel. It was intercepted off the coast of Ostend.

"Over the past few hours, our armed forces, with the support of the French Defence, have boarded an oil tanker belonging to the Russian shadow fleet. The vessel is currently being escorted to the port of Zeebrugge, where it will be seized," Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken wrote on X (Twitter) on Sunday.

He added: "Operation Blue Intruder was carried out by a team of exceptionally brave service members. Excellent work." It is the first such operation for Belgium.

"I congratulate our armed forces on their professional and decisive conduct during tonight's successful operation, and thank our French partners for providing essential support," Prime Minister Bart De Wever said. "Belgium will uphold international maritime law and the security of its territorial waters."

Annelies Verlinden, Minister of Justice and the North Sea, stressed that "for the first time at sea, an oil tanker was intercepted on the basis of intelligence identifying it as a vessel sailing under a false flag" and therefore belonging to the shadow fleet.

The vessel detained by Belgium has been on the European list of ships whose activities must be restricted since October 2025 on the grounds that they form part of the shadow fleet of oil tankers or contribute to Russia's energy revenues, which Moscow relies on to finance its war of aggression against Ukraine.

The Ethera is described as a vessel transporting "crude oil or petroleum products or mineral products that originate in Russia or are exported from Russia" and engaging in "irregular and high-risk shipping practices". Among the restrictions imposed is a ban on access to EU ports.

According to the US Treasury Department, the vessel is part of a maritime empire linked to the son of a senior Iranian official.

The ship is also on the US sanctions list. In a press release issued in July 2025, the US linked Ethera to "the vast shipping empire controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani".

Hossein Shamkhani is the son of Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader, who, according to the Israeli military, was killed during Saturday's strikes.

The US Treasury said that Hossein "leverages corruption through his father's political influence at the highest levels of the Iranian regime to build and operate a massive fleet of tankers and container ships".

Background:

• On 22 January, France, with the support of the United Kingdom, detained the Grinch off the coast of Spain after inspecting documents that confirmed suspicions the vessel was sailing under a false flag. The tanker is part of Russia's shadow fleet and is subject to EU and UK sanctions.
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy later said his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron had told him about plans to release the tanker due to legal requirements.
• At the end of January, a group of 14 European countries issued a public warning to Russian shadow fleet tankers sailing in the Baltic and North Seas.

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