German authorities have said an oil tanker stranded in German waters belongs to Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’, which Berlin says is used to evade sanctions.
Germany’s maritime authorities (CCME) said on Friday that the Panamanian-flagged ship, known as the Eventin, had lost power and steering, meaning tugboats had been deployed to secure the ship. was
German Foreign Minister Annalina Berbock accused Moscow in a statement that by “ruthlessly deploying a fleet of rusting tankers”, Russian President Vladimir Putin is “undermining” sanctions and threatening European security. have been
Russia, which has previously refused to respond to allegations that it uses the Shadow Fleet, has yet to comment on the incident.
The United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union have. Banned Russia’s oil industry after a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In its first report of the tanker drifting in German waters, the CCME said the ship was 274m (898ft) long and 48m (157ft) wide, carrying about 99,000 tonnes of oil.
German maritime authorities said the oil tanker was drifting at low speed in the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea north of the German island of Rügen.
A four-man team of experts was flown to the boat by helicopter on Friday night to establish the towing connections, which were secured. Three tugboats took control of the “huge vessel” which was “unable to make progress”.
Maritime officials said Friday night that no oil spill had been detected.
In his latest update on Saturday afternoon, German naval officials said the convoy around the tanker was heading for Sassnitz, a town on the Rügen island.
Earlier, authorities said the convoy of tugboats working to rescue the Aventin remained north of Rügen and was moving “slowly” to the east, about 2.5 kilometers per hour (1.5 mph). per hour) at a speed of
The CCME said they had taken precautionary measures given the rough seas, as the area where the ship was located was experiencing 2.5m-high (8ft) waves and strong winds.
Although the plane is flying the flag of Panama, German authorities have blamed Russia for the incident.
Russia threatens our European security not only with its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, but with barbed wire, displaced border buoys, disinformation campaigns, GPS jammers and dilapidated oil tankers, the German foreign minister said. has been In a statement
Last December, the European Union said it was “working on measures, including sanctions, to target Russia’s shadow fleet, which would undermine security and threatening the environment, while funding Russia’s war budget”.
The European bloc’s comments came after undersea cables in the Baltic Sea were damaged by a suspected ship, which the EU believes was part of Russia’s shadow fleet.
The move was another step by Western countries to influence the Kremlin’s oil industry in response to Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.
Since strict sanctions were put in place to prevent Russia from exporting oil, Moscow is believed to be using vessels of unclear ownership to ship the goods, namely oil, around the world.
As the Atlantic Council, a US-based think tank, reports, Russia is “instrumentalizing the Dark Fleet, specifically using it as a primary conveyor for oil exports”.
According to the Atlantic Council, a shadow fleet, or dark fleet, is a term given to aging ships that “have unclear ownership, often change their name and flag registration, and are generally without industry-standard Western insurance.” act outside the maritime regulations”. .
The latest incident in the Baltic Sea comes as Washington and London join efforts to impose direct sanctions on energy companies Gazprom Neft and Sergtneftigas.
British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy said the move to undermine Russian oil companies would “crushed Russia’s war chest”, adding that “funds taken from Putin’s hands would have helped save lives in Ukraine.” are”.
But Gazprom Neft called the sanctions “baseless” and “illegal,” as reported by Russian state news agencies.
Also on Friday, the US Treasury Department said it had approved 183 vessels that are “part of the shadow fleet as well as oil tankers owned by Russian-based fleet operators”.