EU Parliament calls for tougher sanctions against Russia's shadow fleet

The European Parliament passed a resolution on 14 November, urging the EU to impose targeted sanctions on Russia's so-called shadow fleet, which enables the country to sell oil while circumventing Western price caps. Source: European Parliament statement, as reported by European Pravda Details: The resolution calls for restrictions on all vessels in Russia's shadow fleet as well as their owners, operators, managers and associated accounts, banks and insurance providers.

It also demands systematic sanctions against vessels operating in EU waters without insurance and suggests deploying drones and satellites to track such ships.

Among other measures in the resolution are provisions to confiscate illicit cargo from shadow fleet vessels and to cease all imports of Russian fossil fuels into the EU. At the end of 2022, the EU, together with the Group of Seven, banned all seaborne imports of Russian oil and, along with its G7 allies, capped the international trade price of Russian oil at US£60 per barrel.

However, according to research by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, around 80% of Russian seaborne oil is now transported by a shadow fleet of vessels that cannot be tracked by the West. There are additional concerns that the outdated tankers in Russia's shadow fleet are prone to leaks and pose a potential environmental hazard near the EU.

Background: Media sources indicate that the next EU sanctions package against Russia will focus specifically on the shadow fleet.

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