Overview
- The Marine Nationale boarded the tanker Deliver on Tuesday while it was transiting off Sicily, President Emmanuel Macron said in a statement issued on Thursday.
- French officials say this is the fifth tanker linked to the so-called ghost fleet that France has intercepted since late 2025.
- Authorities describe the ghost fleet as a large network of ageing tankers that sail under false or changing flags, use ship-to-ship transfers and shell companies to hide owners, and often fail to meet safety and environmental rules.
- Paris framed the operation as part of a broader European push that followed a UK interception days earlier and cites estimates that the ghost-fleet system moves a major share of Russian crude and brings substantial daily revenue to Moscow.
- The interdictions aim to raise the cost of sanctions-busting but legal and practical hurdles remain because vessels are hard to trace, crews face safety risks and the actions could prompt more coordinated seizures, port bans and inspections across Europe.