France intercepts another 'shadow fleet' tanker linked to Russian oil

France's navy intercepted a sanctioned tanker in the Atlantic Ocean, suspected of operating under a false flag and linked to Russian oil trade. The vessel, the Tagor, was ordered to head for the French mainland.

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It is unacceptable for ships to circumvent international sanctions, violate the law of the sea, and finance the war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for more than four years.

French President Emmanuel Macron posted a video showing commandos boarding the tanker in international waters, approximately 400 miles west of Brittany. The tanker had departed from Russia's Arctic port of Murmansk. Macron stated the interception occurred with support from Britain, and that the vessel was suspected of flying under a false flag. Vessel tracking data indicated the tanker was sailing under the flag of Madagascar.

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We consider such actions illegal; they border on international piracy.

French maritime authorities confirmed suspicions about the irregularity of the flag flown after inspecting the vessel's papers. Russia has increasingly relied on older vessels, termed the "shadow fleet," to bypass Western sanctions on its oil and gas exports. France and Britain are committed to obstructing these ships as part of a European strategy to cut off oil revenues that fund Russia's war in Ukraine.

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yet another example of European legal nihilism and rewriting the rules for their own benefit.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov denounced the action as illegal and akin to "international piracy," vowing that Russia would take measures to protect its shipping cargo. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova criticized the French action as "European legal nihilism," asserting that sanctions are only valid if approved by the UN Security Council, not through "illegal unilateral measures."

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illegal unilateral measures ... in the imagination of the Franco-British pirate tandem.