France said on Monday it had detained a Russia-linked oil tanker in the Atlantic, with the Kremlin comparing the latest seizure aimed at tackling Moscow’s sanctions-busting shadow fleet to “international piracy”.
Since September, France has boarded three other ships believed to belong to the shadow fleet, used by Russia to circumvent Western sanctions on its fossil fuel exports imposed over the Kremlin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
The Tagor was detained on Sunday morning in international waters with the help of Britain and other partners, after its Russian captain refused to comply with orders, prosecutors said.
President Emmanuel Macron posted a video of the seizure, which showed commandos rappelling from a helicopter onto the ship.
“We consider these acts illegal. They border on international piracy,” said President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov.
“Russia is taking measures to ensure the safety of its cargo”.
Suspected of carrying Russian or Iranian…
