EU naval mission EUNAVFOR MED IRINI boarded a tanker suspected of serving Russia’s shadow fleet in the Mediterranean, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Sunday, as the bloc expands maritime efforts against the trade.
Kallas said the mission boarded MV MIDAG on Friday, Nov. 13, and that an inspection found the vessel sailing under a false flag. She described it as a suspected Russian shadow fleet tanker.
Kallas said the boarding was conducted under Article 110 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The provision allows a warship to visit a vessel when reasonable suspicion raises questions about its nationality, then check whether it is entitled to fly its claimed flag.
The Council of the European Union adopted a new mandate for IRINI on Oct. 9, extending the mission through March 31, 2029, and directing it to help constrain Russia’s shadow fleet. The mandate also assigns monitoring, surveillance and information-gathering duties, with flag verification where applicable under UNCLOS. Launched on March 31, 2020, IRINI initially focused on enforcing the U.N. arms embargo on Libya.
The Council says aging tankers in the network carry Russian oil or oil products in ways that bypass sanctions and the oil price cap. Operators can obscure the trade through false flags, layered ownership and by switching off tracking systems, the Council says. It says the trade provides revenue to Russia while creating maritime safety and environmental risks.
Kallas wrote that the EU would continue disrupting the fleet at sea and through diplomacy: “The EU will keep disrupting Russia’s shadow fleet at sea and through diplomatic means.”
She said EU foreign ministers were expected Monday, Nov. 16, to approve new Russia sanctions listings targeting banks, buyers and companies supporting the fleet.
