Overview
- Since the March 25 authorisation to board suspect ships, the UK has not seized a single vessel even as more than 120 sanctioned tankers have moved through UK waters.
- Officials cite disputes over berths and budgets, with warnings that securing and maintaining a seized tanker could cost tens of millions of pounds.
- Ministers and advisers have raised legal risks and the prospect of crews seeking asylum, and the Ministry of Defence says any enforcement will be considered case by case.
- Russia’s so‑called shadow fleet numbers about 700 ships, with 544 on the UK sanctions list, and many use flag switches, fake identities, tracker gaps and ship‑to‑ship transfers to mask cargo.
- The security picture has sharpened as the MoD tracked Russian submarines over undersea cables with no damage found and a frigate escorted tankers through the Channel, while the UK has so far only supported allied actions such as the US seizure of the Marinera.