German Foreign Minister Says Stricken Tanker In Baltic Sea Belongs To Russia's 'Shadow Fleet'

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said a heavily loaded oil tanker that Germany's maritime emergencies agency had to secure on January 10 in the Baltic Sea is part of the "shadow fleet" that Moscow uses to avoid sanctions on its oil exports.

Baerbock criticized Russia's use of such tankers, calling them "dilapidated” and labelling them a threat to European security, after the 274-meter-long Eventin was reported adrift.

"With the reckless deployment of a fleet of rusty tankers, [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is not only circumventing sanctions, but also accepting that tourism on the Baltic Sea will come to a standstill -- be it in the Baltic States, in Poland or in our country," Baerbock said.

"Russia is endangering our European security not only with its illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, but also with severed cables, displaced border buoys, disinformation campaigns, GPS jammers and, as we have seen, dilapidated oil tankers," she added.

The environmental organization Greenpeace also says the ship belongs to Russia’s shadow fleet and names it on a list published on its website. It says all the tankers on the list are old and many have technical defects.

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Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys also reacted to the incident, saying he favored more decisive action against Russia's shadow fleet.

"The Baltic Sea is the most important gateway for Russia's oil exports and we must stop this," he said during a visit to the Estonian capital Tallinn.

At the same time, the "shadow fleet" is an "instrument in hybrid activities" and poses a threat to the environment, he said.

Germany's Central Command for Maritime Emergencies (CCME) said the vessel, which is carrying almost 100,000 tons of oil, experienced an engine failure on January 10 and "was drifting at low speed" off the island of Ruegen.

An emergency tug intercepted the Eventin to stabilize the ship and was joined by two tugboats that successfully attached towing lines to the stricken vessel and held it in place, the German command said.

No oil leaks were detected by surveillance aircraft, and a spokesman for the CCME quoted by dpa said the vessel did not pose an immediate environmental risk or a danger to the crew on board.

No decision has been made on whether to tow the ship to a port.

Since Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in February 2022, Western countries have taken steps to reduce oil revenues that Russia has used to fund the war. In response, Russia has relied on the shadow fleet to continue lucrative oil exports.

In addition to direct action against Russia's oil industry, Western countries have moved to sanction individual ships thought to be in the shadow fleet.

The United States and Britain announced sweeping sanctions on January 10 to impose restrictions on more than 180 ships in the fleet.

The Eventin was built in 2006 and is sailing under a Panamanian flag, according to Greenpeace. Its owners are unknown. It left the Russian port of Ust-Luga in the Leningrad region on January 6 and was heading to the Egyptian Port Said.