Shadow fleet undeterred by Baltic enhanced surveillance and naval escorts
INCREASED naval escorts, insurance checks and overt surveillance have failed to deter shadow fleet tankers from transiting the Baltic Sea and English Channel.
While a small minority of fraudulently flagged vessels have started to deviate around the west coast of the UK to reach the Baltic, rather than enter the more direct route of transiting the English Channel, overall traffic of shadow fleet tankers remains unchanged.
In July, 34 shadow fleet tankers, eight of them flying fraudulent flags, loaded Russian crude and transited the Baltic, exiting via the English Channel before heading to Asia via the Suez Canal. In June that figure was 36.
There have been 10 transits in August so far.
Norway, UK, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia and Germany are now routinely checking the insurance details of shadow fleet tankers entering and exiting the Baltic.
While at least 16 tankers are known to have transited with fake certification from fraudulent ship registers, the checks, combined with regular coastguard and naval patrols are part of a coordinated effort enhance surveillance of the shadow fleet loading in the Baltic.
Over the past few weeks Danish naval patrol vessels and German Coast Guard vessels have started sailing next to shadow fleet tankers for sections of their transits.
While there is insufficient naval capacity to shadow each suspicious vessel, Nato is
coordinating area patrols. In addition to the visible naval assets, patrols also include the use of submarines, aircraft and satellite surveillance.
In response, Russia has also increased its naval escorts and patrols in the region, although not all their attention is focused on the shadow fleet tankers being tracked by Nato.
Nato officials report seeing increased escorts for so-called Syrian Express vessels when these are transiting through the Baltic and also occasionally in the Mediterranean. The supply route to Syria was dubbed the “Syrian Express” by Russian sailors after its launch in 2012 when these ships, often escorted by Russian naval vessels, transported military vehicles and equipment.
Two of the vessels known to be used on this route, Sparta (IMO: 9268710) and General Skobelev (IMO: 9503304), briefly stopped off the UK’s Dorset coast on Monday before continuing through the English Channel headed towards the Baltic.
The ships are routinely escorted by a Russian corvette, Boikiy, which is in turn shadowed by Royal Navy warships when transiting the English Channel.
In June, Boikiy caused a minor diplomatic storm after it broadcast a fake ID code as it passed through the Channel escorting two shadow fleet tankers.
The enhanced surveillance and escorts appear to have prompted a recent trend among some of the shadow fleet tankers to divert away from the English Channel and take a longer route around Ireland into the Baltic.
That trend, however, has only seen four tankers take the longer route so far.
More than 20 falsely flagged ships, many of them registered to the fake Malawi register, have opted to sail through the English Channel.
According to Article 110 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, a vessel without nationality can be boarded by a warship. Nato states, however, are choosing not to and instead collect certification known to be fake.
When the Estonian authorities briefly stopped a shadow fleet tanker Blint (IMO: 9293002), then named Jaguar, in May, the incident resulted in a Russian military response, including the scramble of fighter aircraft as a show of force.
Referring to the incident in the UN Security Council on Tuesday, Russia’s deputy ambassador to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, described it as a “Western assault on fundamental maritime freedoms”.
“The actions of Estonia and its European support group have created a dangerous precedent,” said Polyanskiy before reiterating a warning that Russia would respond directly to any further attempts to stop ships.
“If other states follow this example, then the global supply chain will be broken and maritime trade will cease. Using naval forces and resources of Nato countries for such illegal actions is a direct path to military escalation and will create a new risk for maritime security,” he told the council.
Lloyd's List Daily Briefing 08 July 2025
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