Russia plans to place more oil tankers under its flag, Ukrainian intelligence agency says

Russia plans to increase the number of oil tankers sailing under its flag due to the growing number of detentions of vessels from its shadow fleet.

Source: Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (FISU)

Details: The FISU says it obtained information about the Kremlin's plans to increase the number of tankers transporting oil under the Russian flag.

"This decision is dictated by the increasingly frequent cases of detentions of tankers belonging to Russia's shadow fleet by European countries and the United States," the intelligence service noted.

The FISU also believes this may indicate cooperation between Russia and Iran in coordinating the safe passage of shadow fleet vessels through the military conflict zone in the Middle East.

The Federal Autonomous Institution Russian Maritime Register of Shipping, which is under EU sanctions, plans to identify and inspect about 80 tankers in the near future in order to re-register them.

The distribution of tankers by the countries where the shipowners are registered is as follows: Seychelles – 35 vessels, China – 23 vessels, Azerbaijan – 13 vessels and Samoa – 8 vessels. There are also tankers owned by companies registered in Vietnam, India, the UAE and the Marshall Islands.

The intelligence service notes that increasing the shadow fleet under the Russian flag will automatically make it easier for Russia to place intelligence agents on board these vessels for espionage and sabotage activities against Western countries.

This is particularly relevant in the Baltic region, through which more than 40% of Russia's maritime oil exports pass.

Background:

• On 27 February, Ukraine's Defence Ministry team said it has become actively involved in the economic war to work on blocking the Russian shadow fleet.
• On 13 January, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the restrictions currently imposed on Russia's maritime oil exports should reduce Russian revenues by at least US$30 billion annually.
• The International Maritime Organisation has counted 529 vessels sailing under false flags and is stepping up the fight against the offenders.
• France allowed the oil tanker Grinch, suspected of belonging to Russia's shadow fleet, to leave its waters after it had been detained nearly a month earlier.
• The Monitoring Group at Ukraine's Black Sea Institute for Strategic Studies reported that tankers carrying crude oil had carried out 2,346 voyages from Russian ports in 2025. The largest number, 1,111 voyages, departed from Russian ports in the Baltic Sea. Over the year, they transported well over 230 million tonnes of oil.
• Previously, the Monitoring Group also reported that US President Donald Trump's sanctions against Russian oil had an effect only for a limited time after their introduction. The "first shock effect" later faded, and Russia increased seaborne exports of crude oil from Baltic Sea ports.

Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!