EU plans to strengthen the right to search ships to counter Russiaʼs shadow fleet

The European Union is preparing to interpret international maritime law differently to combat Russiaʼs so-called shadow fleet.

This is reported by Euractiv with reference to the draft of the relevant EU declaration.

The bloc is developing a common interpretation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea that would give national authorities more powers to search ships suspected of threatening undersea cables and pipelines.

The draft declaration states the right of states to search ships on the high seas or in their own waters if they have reason to suspect that they are sailing without or under a false flag. Fourteen EU countries have already supported this position.

The new measures also include monitoring compliance with requirements for the disclosure of information about vessels and the protection of underwater critical infrastructure. In parallel, the EU proposes to automatically add new vessels of the shadow fleet to the sanctions list to avoid delays.

The Russian shadow fleet is estimated to number between 600 and 1,400 vessels, of which 117 are already under EU sanctions.

What is known about the Russian shadow fleet?

In early December 2022, the G7 members, as well as Australia and the EU, imposed price caps on Russian oil, setting a maximum price of $60 per barrel. From February 5, 2023, these countries imposed price caps on Russian petroleum products: $100 for diesel fuel, $45 for various lubricants.

To circumvent oil sanctions, Russia has begun building a shadow fleet. This is a fleet of old tankers that turn off their beacons so that they cannot be seen by surveillance systems. These tankers are mostly operated by the Russian state-owned company Suchkomflot.

According to The Guardian’s September 2023 estimates, Russia’s shadow fleet consists of approximately 600 vessels, providing 70% of Russia’s oil exports and almost 10% of the world’s “wet cargo” fleet. It transports an estimated 1.7 million barrels of oil per day, generating large profits for the Kremlin.

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