Belgium strengthens cooperation with European partners against Russian shadow fleet

Fourteen European countries, including Belgium, are stepping up their cooperation against Russia's shadow fleet. The countries committed to working out joint guidelines to ensure greater transparency, respect for international law and responsible behaviour at sea.

Russia's shadow fleet consists mainly of old ships that Moscow uses to sell its oil and circumvent the oil price cap implemented by the G7 in 2022. Ships in the fleet obscure their identities by transmitting falsified data and turning off their transponders.

Recently, the fleet has been in the news due to suspicious activities near critical power and data cables on the seabed. Some of these ships have even been accused of severing these submarine cables, either intentionally or unintentionally.

The EU is attempting to blacklist them, having restricted almost 350 Russian ships thus far, and another 77 as part as the upcoming 18th sanctions package.

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However, individual countries are also stepping up the fight. On Thursday, Belgium was among the 14 European countries that announced they are strengthening their cooperation against Russian ships.

Iceland, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and the UK are also involved. The group plans to draft joint guidelines to promote transparency and compliance with international law, and ensure transparency across maritime operations. ​

"The pressure on Russia must remain high"

"Russia is trying to circumvent international sanctions via stateless or falsely flagged vessels, endangering not only maritime security, but also the environment, trade and our critical infrastructure," Belgian Foreign minister Maxime Prévot said. "We cannot and must not let that pass."

The countries also call on other countries to join the initiative. "The pressure on Russia must remain high. Only by working together and taking coordinated action can we face the hybrid threats," Prévot said.

^{The Finnish Border Guard tails a ship suspected of being part of Russia's shadow fleet © PHOTO FINNISH BORDER GUARD / LEHTIKUVA / AFP}

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