March 1 (Reuters) – Belgium seized an oil tanker belonging to the Russian shadow fleet on Sunday, Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken said.
Western sanctions imposed on Russia for invading Ukraine and aimed at cutting its oil revenues have led to the rise of a “shadow fleet” of tankers helping Moscow to keep its crude exports flowing.
“Over the past few hours, our armed forces, with the support of the French Defence, have boarded an oil tanker belonging to the Russian shadow fleet,” Francken said in a post on X early on Sunday.
“The vessel is currently being escorted to the port of Zeebrugge, where it will be seized.”
Shadow fleet vessels typically have opaque ownership structures and have raised concern about possible environmental risks, with poorly regulated, ageing tankers prone to spills, mechanical failures, and leaks, threatening marine ecosystems.
“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,” Francken said, adding that Belgium took its responsibility seriously.
The minister told Reuters that the seized vessel was suspected of sailing with a “false flag and false documents”.
(Reporting by Bart Meijer and Lili Bayer; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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