Royal Marines seize the 'Smyrtos' in the Channel days before a sanctions package hitting ships, insurers and procurement networks
Shadow Economy
Sanctions evasion, trafficking, illicit flows and cybercrime.
state of play
Enforcement against Russia's shadow fleet is shifting from paper to the water: UK forces boarded a sanctioned tanker in the Channel and designated 27 more vessels plus insurers, under new interdiction powers. Physically seizing ships raises Russia's export costs and widens the discount on its crude — and reportedly diverted other tankers. Watch whether other states adopt interdiction and how the fleet reroutes.
tracking
Shadow fleets & evasion
Illegal extraction
Cybercrime
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