Sanctioned oil tankers shift to Russian flag amid Western seizures

Wednesday 11 February 2026 - 17:50

By: Dakir Madiha

Sanctioned oil tankers shift to Russian flag amid Western seizures

Nearly 70 oil tankers linked to Russia’s so called shadow fleet have reflagged under the Russian registry since May 2025, responding to a sharp escalation in Western sanctions enforcement that has left stateless vessels exposed to seizure on the high seas, according to maritime intelligence firm Windward.

The pace of reflagging has accelerated in recent months. Since December, when the United States, the United Kingdom and France began boarding and confiscating vessels operating without recognized national registration, 40 additional tankers have moved to the Russian flag. In the past week alone, three vessels, the Akkord, the Saga and the Topaz, abandoned what analysts described as fraudulent registrations and formally adopted Russian registry status.

Windward estimates that at least 120 more sanctioned tankers currently operating under flags of convenience or questionable registries could follow suit in the coming months as Western restrictions intensify. The company identified roughly 120 large tankers trading with Russia, each exceeding 180 meters in length, that are presently flying flags issued by 19 registries it considers fraudulent. These include registrations linked to Botswana, Guyana, Guinea and Madagascar.

The shift comes after a sustained crackdown on permissive maritime registries that previously offered cover to vessels facing sanctions. Throughout 2025, more than 300 shadow fleet tankers reportedly adopted false flags after being deregistered by countries such as Gabon, the Cook Islands, Barbados, the Comoros and Gambia under Western diplomatic pressure. As a result, many ships were effectively rendered stateless, increasing their vulnerability to interdiction under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The most recent seizure occurred on February 9, when US commandos boarded the Suezmax tanker Aquila II in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean Sea. The operation marked the eighth US interdiction tied to Venezuelan oil shipments and the ninth such action overall since December.

By bringing vessels under its national registry, Russia restores the legal protections granted to ships by their flag state under international maritime law. Analysts say this move significantly reduces the risk of detention or confiscation by Western naval forces and limits the leverage of sanctions enforcement at sea.

About half of the tankers that have reflagged to Russia are effectively owned by Sovcomflot, the state controlled Russian shipping company. Before February 2022, approximately one third of Sovcomflot’s fleet sailed under the Russian flag. That proportion has now risen to 56 percent. Over the past 12 months, the number of tankers exceeding 50,000 deadweight tons flying the Russian flag has nearly doubled.

European governments have also stepped up enforcement. On January 26, fourteen European coastal states issued a joint declaration warning that vessels operating under multiple flags would be treated as stateless. Days earlier, French forces, supported by the United Kingdom, seized the shadow tanker Grinch in the Mediterranean. British Defence Secretary John Healey said the operation was intended to disrupt funding streams linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The coordinated Western response has forced shadow fleet operators into a narrowing set of options: continue sailing under questionable registries and face seizure, or seek the legal shield of the Russian flag. Windward noted in its assessment that vessels lacking legitimate flag state protection remain exposed to boarding, detention or confiscation under international maritime law, while reflagging to Russia restores a degree of legal certainty and immediate operational security.