An oil tanker suspected of belonging to the Russian shadow fleet has been seized in the North Sea in a joint Belgian-French operation.
The captured vessel is named Ethera and is on the European Union’s sanctions list, according to Belgian officials.
Announcing the raid, French president Emmanuel Macron called it “a major blow to the shadow fleet“.
Posting on X, he wrote: “In the North Sea, our French Navy helicopters helped last night in the boarding by Belgian forces of an oil tanker under international sanctions.
“Europeans are determined to cut off the sources of funding for Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine by enforcing sanctions.”
Moscow is believed to be using a network of poorly-regulated ships with opaque ownership structures to circumvent Western sanctions aimed at cutting its oil revenues.
The ageing tankers are typically prone to spills, mechanical failures, and leaks, and often sail without top-tier insurance or safety certification.
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Belgian defence minister Theo Francken said the seized ship was suspected of sailing with a “false flag and false documents”.
He said: “Without his shadow fleet Putin can’t wage war against innocent Ukrainians. So we take these vessels out. One by one. Till his war of aggression stops.”
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The ship is now being escorted to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge, Francken said.
Belgium’s federal prosecutor’s office has also opened an investigation.
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In a post on X, Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said: “We urge all partners to follow this example, counter Russia’s shadow fleet resolutely through sanctions and concrete action, and advance peace through strength.”
The Russian embassy in Belgium said it was not notified about the basis for the seizure, and added that it was seeking information on whether any Russian nationals were on board.
The French navy intercepted the tanker Grinch in the Mediterranean in January and only released it a month later after the owners paid a penalty worth “several million euros”.
Previous seizures of tankers carrying Russian cargoes have been called “piracy” by the Kremlin.
