UK government authorizes military to detain Russian “shadow fleet” ships in its territorial waters

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has authorized his country’s armed forces and law enforcement officers to detain ships in the country’s territorial waters if they are on British sanctions lists, according to a statement from the UK government released earlier today.

“Putin is rubbing his hands at the war in the Middle East because he thinks higher oil prices will let him line his pockets. That’s why we’re going after his shadow fleet even harder, not just keeping Britain safe but starving Putin’s war machine of the dirty profits that fund his barbaric campaign in Ukraine,” Starmer said.

Starmer is due in Helsinki for a Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) summit on March 26. The topics of regional security and possible measures to counter Russian aggression are expected to be discussed.

“A number of JEF allies, including Finland, Sweden, and Estonia, have carried out recent operations against suspected illegal shadow fleet vessels in the Baltic, closing off critical maritime routes to Russia’s malign operation,” the statement continued, adding that the Royal Navy has helped allies track several “shadow fleet” vessels in recent weeks, enabling them to be intercepted in European and Mediterranean waters.

The English Channel is one of the waterways that Britain is closing to vessels under sanctions. The UK government said it expects the move to force operators to “divert to longer, financially painful routes, or risk being detained by British forces.”

The UK military has been monitoring the “shadow fleet” for several years. After a successful U.S. operation to seize the tanker Bella 1 (IMO 9230880) was carried out with British support in early January, ministers ordered plans to be drawn up for similar operations against other Russian “shadow fleet” ships.