The United Kingdom has imposed sanctions on 10 ships it says are part of Vladimir Putin’s “shadow fleet” in a new attempt to curb Russia’s revenues as its military conflict with Ukraine continues.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said on Wednesday that “Putin’s war machine is funded by a dark and illegal economic system that this government is determined to destabilize.”
Russia’s extensive fleet consists of often unseaworthy and outdated tankers that ship Russian gas and oil products around the world. The country relies heavily on oil exports as the primary source of funding for its war in Ukraine, accounting for about 25% of Russia’s budget in 2023.
The targeted vessels are all “large-scale violators” – ships that operate day and night to transport as much Russian oil as possible.
These ships will no longer be allowed to enter British ports and will not have access to the British ship register.
Lammy added that the new sanctions “further undermine Russia’s ability to trade oil through its shadow fleet. Together with our partners, we will continue to send a clear message to Russia that the international community stands with Ukraine and we will not tolerate this illegal fleet.”
According to several British media reports, the ships Nikolai Zuyev, NS Asia And Zaliv Aniva have collectively transported more than $5 billion (455.68 billion rupees) worth of Russian oil since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Since February 2022, sanctions have cost Russia more than $400 billion in lost assets and revenues, while the UK has imposed sanctions on various individuals and entities.
Lammy said: “Russia has been forced to spend more than $8 billion on assembling this shadow fleet. But with sanctioned tankers sitting around unable to load oil, we are determined to make Putin’s investment a costly misstep for the Kremlin.”
Despite a 1.1% drop in revenue, Russian energy company Rosneft announced a 45.5% increase in net profit and a 25.1% increase in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) for the first quarter of 2024 (Q1 2024).
In the first quarter of 2024, the company generated revenues of USD 27 billion and EBITDA of Rs 857 billion.
“UK imposes sanctions on 10 oil vessels in fight against Russian ‘shadow fleet’” was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData brand.
The information on this site is included in good faith for general information purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely and we make no representation, warranty or guarantee, express or implied, as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
