In response to Russia’s shadow fleet operating under African flags, two naval forces from the European Union (EU) have increased their activities in African waters.
The EU adds another mission in Africa to combat Russia’s $100 billion shadow armada operating under African flags [Image: EU naval forces]
- The EU has ramped up naval operations in African waters to monitor Russia’s shadow fleet, which operates under African flags to bypass sanctions.
- Russia’s shadow fleet is a network of old tankers transporting oil, reportedly generating $100 billion annually as a workaround to Western embargoes.
- The fleet employs tactics like changing flags, deactivating tracking, and ship-to-ship transfers to hide the origin of its cargo.
- EU operations Atalanta and Aspides now focus on gathering intelligence on these fleets, estimating between 400 and 1,400 vessels involved.
The European Union’s naval forces have assumed the responsibility of gathering intel on Russia’s operations concerning its shadow fleet.
Russia’s shadow fleet is a network of aged oil tankers and other boats that transport Russian crude and petroleum products.
The Russian shadow fleet, which is reportedly running a $100 billion annual operation, is a direct response to Western sanctions on the Kremlin in retaliation for its conflict against Ukraine.
Since initiating a war against Ukraine in 2022, the international community has responded by placing embargoes on Russian items, particularly its energy products.
As a result, Russia’s energy trade has been hit with a literal roadblock, forcing it to look for alternative methods to export its products.
One such alternative is registering its ‘shadow fleet’ under African flags to bypass the aforementioned sanctions.
The Admiral Grigorovich, pictured here in Sudan, has been sailing in the English Channel as Russia’s shadow fleet tankers come under threat from seizure by the UK.IBRAHIM ISHAQ/AFP
The fleet usually operates under opaque ownership structures, regularly changes names and flags, deactivates tracking systems, and relies on ship-to-ship transfers to disguise the provenance of its cargoes.
In response to this, the EU has decided to launch an intelligence-gathering mission to intercept any such operation active in African waters.
As midway through the year, Operation Atalanta joined Operation Aspides to serve as the EU’s primary intelligence mechanism, monitoring the locations of an estimated 400 to 600 vessels
This surveillance is significant given that President Vladimir Putin depends on crude oil and gasoline exports.
While certain assessments indicate that the shadow fleet may total up to 1,400 ships, the European Union (EU), the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US) have currently instituted sanctions against 120 to 180 hulls.
The new operation regarding the shadow fleet was announced in February, alongside a one-year extension of Operation Aspides, the European Union naval force responsible for patrolling and monitoring the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden, and the northwest Indian Ocean.
According to a spokesperson for the European Union responding to this publication, the mandates of both Operation Aspides and Operation Atalanta were extended to include “ maritime situation awareness in their AoOs by collecting information, in addition to data necessary to protect vessels, on arms trafficking and shadow fleets”.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the European Commission, Interpol, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and other relevant organizations will be officially notified of these developments.
Operation Atalanta, currently in its eighteenth year, was initially established to counter piracy and safeguard World Food Programme (WFP) vessels tasked with delivering food supplies to South Sudan and Somalia.
Additionally, Operation Aspides constitutes a defensive maritime security mission that may deploy up to three naval platforms, alongside fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, to fulfill its escort duties and associated operational tasks.
