Russia threatens west with vessel seizures

Russia promises to take "retaliatory measures" in response to the detention of its so-called "shadow fleet" by Western countries, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accusing Europe of "piracy".

Source: The Moscow Times, an independent Amsterdam-based news outlet

Details: Lavrov claimed that the European Union is turning into a military alliance "and has taken to the open seizure of foreign vessels and the theft of their cargoes".

Lavrov added that European countries "have invented the term 'shadow fleet', which does not exist in international law, as well as an oil price cap that restricts European companies from working with the Russian fleet".

A policy of pressure and dictation will be met with a "mirror and asymmetric response", Lavrov claims.

The Moscow Times notes that Western countries intensified the detention of vessels transporting Russian oil at the beginning of 2026. France, Sweden, the United Kingdom and other states have joined this.

According to The Moscow Times, "shadow vessels" are being intercepted in the Baltic and Mediterranean seas as well as in the Indian Ocean.

In particular, this refers to the sanctioned shadow tanker DF Peak, detained by the French Navy in the Indian Ocean. The Benin-flagged vessel was heading to a port in Chile and became the sixth tanker of the so-called "shadow fleet" detained by France over the past year.

The vessel belonged to the Russian shipping company Sovcomflot and changed its name twice, and it is operated by a company from Hong Kong. The Russian Embassy in France called the detention of the vessel "piracy" and declared it a "gross violation of international law".

Background:

• Defence Intelligence of Ukraine previously gathered information on 28 vessels of Russia's so-called "shadow fleet" and published the names of the captains so that "shadow logistics would not remain anonymous".
• It was previously reported that Russia has quietly increased its shadow fleet of gas carriers by adding second-hand vessels and the first domestically produced tankers – it now stands at 25 vessels.
• Russian and Iranian "shadow fleets" continued to use forged websites to create fake documents and simulate ship registries, maritime administrations and organisations of African state seafarers in order to bypass international sanctions during oil exports.
• Earlier, the European Union allowed military personnel in the Mediterranean Sea participating in Operation IRINI (preventing illicit arms supplies to Libya) to also inspect tankers suspected of transporting Russian oil.
• A Swedish court recognised the arrest of the cargo vessel Caffa in the Baltic Sea as lawful and permitted its transfer to Ukraine as part of an investigation into the removal of grain from territories occupied by Russia.

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