Source
09/01/2025
By Ishtwan Kamel
Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’, which poses a number of threats to the West, is a strategic challenge for Europe. And Western sanctions alone are not enough to combat it.
Does IMO have to take additional measures to strengthen control over the safety of global shipping, so that owners, operators and crews of ships flying so-called flags of convenience clearly understand that any violation on their part will be realistically and swiftly punished? Let’s take a closer look at it.
The ‘shadow fleet’ consists of older vessels owned by non-transparent companies registered in countries with low maritime regulation, such as Gabon and others. Prior to the imposing of sanctions and the capping of the price of Russian oil at $60 per barrel in December 2022, this fleet was used primarily to circumvent sanctions in countries such as Iran and Venezuela. However, after sanctions were imposed on Russian oil, its size increased to 17% of the global oil tanker fleet.
According to the predictions of a number of maritime operators, a significant number of shadow fleets and their activities outside the IMO rules will certainly lead to a serious accident involving an oil spill in the open sea, with catastrophic consequences for the environment. In addition to the environmental damage, law-abiding and honest transport and logistics companies will also suffer significant losses as a result of the suspension of traffic in the contaminated areas.
Official carriers are concerned about the growing number of so-called shadow tankers in the world’s oceans. These vessels carry oil and oil products, mainly from Iran, Venezuela and Russia.
Who the modern filibusters look like? They are still robbers and evil acting people but now they are concentrated on attacking the environment. Most of the tankers are extremely old, i.e. on the verge of decay. Number of tankers are not adequately insured by leading and trusted insurance companies. They are owned by offshore companies whose ownership is not transparent. Therefore, in the event of an accident, it remains unclear who the owner is and who should be held liable for the vessel.
The sinking of two old Russian tankers in the Black Sea has demonstrated the risks to the Baltic Sea: huge spills of fuel oil are being discovered off the coast of not only Krasnodar Territory, but also occupied Crimea. Birds, dolphins and fish are dying.
The active operation of the shadow fleet has also compromised the safety dimension. In middle ages gentlemen of fortune hung pirates flag to distract other vessels from their state belonging. Now, It is common for shadow tankers to switch off their transponders (ship positioning systems), which is a gross violation of International Maritime Organisation (IMO) rules as it poses a threat to other vessels. The lack of a proper response to this practice is effectively destroying the international maritime safety system.
The Kremlin is actively using shadow fleet vessels in its hybrid war against Europe and the West. This was demonstrated not only by the damage to the Estlink 2 submarine electric cable in the Gulf of Finland, but also by incidents in the Baltic Sea with the breakage of fibre-optic cables between Lithuania and Sweden and between Finland and Germany (autumn 2024). Another evidence of hybrid warfare is the severance of the Balticconnector gas pipeline and the Elisa fibre-optic communication line between Estonia and Finland (autumn 2023).
At the end of 2023, the IMO adopted a separate resolution calling on member states to take tougher action against fraudulent ship registrations and to increase inspections of tankers in ports. However, this is not working in practice.
It appears that the International Maritime Organisation, as a specialised UN body, has de facto turned a blind eye to the above problems.
In addition to the IMO’s inaction, it is worth noting that the governments of the EU Member States, the UK, Norway and Iceland have not paid sufficient attention to this problem. As a result of their policies, bogus operators and dishonest insurance companies make excessive profits, while leading shipowners who refuse to carry oil from Iran, Venezuela and Russia suffer serious losses. In turn, these three authoritarian states are able to successfully evade international sanctions.
It is necessary not only to strengthen sanctions against states that violate international law, but also to counter any circumvention of these sanctions. International efforts in this regard should be consistent and sustained.
Many observers have long pointed out that Denmark, with its strait between the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, is in a position to control the passage of all ships, including tankers.
In addition, control of ships in the English Channel should be strengthened by the relevant authorities in the UK and France. Inspectors from these and other European countries should thoroughly check and, if violations are found, detain tankers passing their shores without proper insurance.
We can try to fence ourselves off from the Russians and their outdated tankers with sanctions, but our partners should remember that planet Earth is our common home, where we live. And if the Kremlin does not understand this, then perhaps it is worth reminding them of this fact more harshly?
We should urge the IMO to take additional measures to strengthen control over the safety of global shipping, so that owners, operators and crews of ships flying so-called flags of convenience clearly understand that any violation on their part will be realistically and swiftly punished.