Ukrainian President Olodymyr Zelenskyy attended an extraordinary meeting in London on July 19, where Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his cabinet discussed new measures to disrupt Russia’s “shadow fleet.”
“I will not allow Russia’s shadow fleet of oil tankers and the dirty money it generates to sail freely through European waters and jeopardise our security,” Starmer said.
The Ukrainian prime minister was the first foreign leader to visit Downing Street since Starmer’s Labour Party won the British election on 4 July, and the first foreign leader to address the cabinet in person since US President Bill Clinton visited Tony Blair in 1997.
On July 18, the UK imposed sanctions on a further 11 oil tankers, three of which are believed to be part of the shadow fleet, while eight belong to Russian state-owned oil tanker company Sovcomflot PJSC, according to the UK’s updated sanctions list.
Today we reset our relationship with Europe. pic.twitter.com/3Z8jNGlGV1
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) July 18, 2024
The sanctions follow a day of intense discussions at a country house in Oxfordshire (the birthplace of Winston Churchill, of all places), where Starmer and Zelenskyy were joined by French President Emmanual Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and more than 40 other European prime ministers. They all reportedly agreed to a “tough approach” to the shadow fleet.
Zelenskyy also visited Lancaster House, home to the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), where he met representatives of British defence companies.
The UK confirmed $3 billion a year in support for Ukraine’s war effort, as well as a new package of munitions, anti-tank missiles and artillery.
I had an important meeting with representatives of British defense companies.
We discussed joint defense production, with a primary focus on ammunition, air defense systems, artillery, armored vehicles, and drones.
The United Kingdom was the first country in Europe to provide… pic.twitter.com/NEgetr3BC3
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) July 18, 2024
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said deals such as an agreement with BAE Systems to maintain and repair UK-supplied weapons in Ukraine and an arrangement with Sheffield Forgemasters to support the repair and overhaul of Ukrainian vehicles would help both the Ukrainian and British armed forces secure the equipment they need.
Russia’s money-guzzling, sanctions-dodging ‘shadow fleet’
According to a Russian government report, the Russian shadow fleet consists of approximately 600 vessels and represents about 10% of the global wet cargo fleet. Statement from Downing Street released late last night (July 18).
The Shadow Fleet transports approximately 1.7 million barrels of oil every day, generating significant financial resources for the Russian war machine.
According to Downing Street, some of the ships are also said to be acting as Russian listening stations, while others are carrying weapons to Moscow.
🚨 SANCTIONED: vessels used by Russia to enable illicit trade in Russian oil.
Putin’s shadow fleet uses deceptive practices in an attempt to undermine sanctions. It is a serious risk to European maritime security, trade, and the environment.#EPC2024 pic.twitter.com/GbgMZlCIXS
— Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) July 19, 2024
The name shadow fleet (or dark fleet) comes from the practice of sailing ‘dark’: deliberately disabling a ship’s automatic identification system (AIS).
Although disabling AIS is not strictly illegal, it is associated with devious motives as it allows ships to sail unhindered.
There has been a noticeable increase in rhetoric and plans recently to “crack down” on the Shadow Fleet, but concrete action remains limited.
Last month, the Danish Foreign Ministry said naval authorities would crack down on the fleet transporting Russian oil. through the Baltic Sea and the Danish Strait.
European governments, including Denmark, are also concerned that these tankers, which are often old and insured outside Western countries, could harm the local environment. Most have no oil spill insuranceaccording to the Kiev School of Economics.
“Zelenskyy attends extraordinary UK cabinet meeting over Russian ‘shadow fleet'” was originally created and published by Ship technologya brand of GlobalData.
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