Overview
- Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken said Belgian forces with French support boarded the vessel overnight under Operation Blue Intruder.
- The tanker is under escort to the port of Zeebrugge, where authorities plan to detain it, with further details promised by Belgian officials.
- This is Belgium’s first reported detention of a tanker linked to Russia’s so‑called shadow fleet.
- President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the move and urged Europe to enable confiscation of such ships and cargoes through updated laws.
- Recent precedents include the tanker Grinch, held near Marseille in January and released after paying several million euros in fines, while Moscow has called such actions piracy.