British Forces Seize Russian Shadow-Fleet Tanker Smyrtos in English Channel

British forces seized the Russian shadow-fleet oil tanker Smyrtos while it was trying to transit the English Channel, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on X on Sunday.

“British forces have seized a Russian shadow-fleet oil tanker that was trying to transit the English Channel, Prime Minister Keir Starmer says”

Al Jazeera

The UK Ministry of Defence confirmed the early Sunday seizure, saying the tanker was boarded by Royal Marine Commandos and National Crime Agency officials with support from Chinook helicopters and other aircraft, a frigate and a minehunter.

Al Jazeera

The operation lasted six hours, and the vessel will be “provisionally moved to an anchorage off the South Coast of England and will be monitored for any environmental or safety concerns”.

MarineTraffic data cited by Reuters said the Smyrtos, sailing under the Cameroonian flag, departed the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga on June 5 and is bound for Port Said, Egypt.

The UK said the interdiction was a blow to Russia’s “shadow fleet” used to fund its conflict in Ukraine, while Russia did not comment publicly and the Russian embassy in London did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

Starmer framed the seizure as a message to Vladimir Putin’s government, writing on X, “This successful operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war in Ukraine that we will not let them hide,” and the Ministry of Defence said the move was the first UK-led operation of its kind.

Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis said, “Operations like this require skill, professionalism and courage. I pay tribute to our Armed Forces personnel and all those involved,” adding that “Russia relies on its shadow fleet to fund its conflict in Ukraine and our interdiction delivers a blow to Putin’s illegal war.”

BBC

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Starmer and the British people for their “principled resolve,” and he posted that “every decision by partners that deprives Russia of money also limits the war itself,” on X.

The Guardian reported Starmer released a video on TikTok showing heavily armed Royal Marine commandos boarding the Smyrtos, and it said the six-hour operation had been months in the planning.

The Guardian also said the Smyrtos was carrying more than 100,000 tonnes of Russian crude oil, and that it had been expelled from Cameroon’s registry, leaving it legally stateless.

The UK said the seizure would disrupt Russia’s war funding by targeting the shadow fleet, and the Ministry of Defence stated Britain has imposed sanctions on more than 500 vessels to date.

“- British Armed Forces interdict Russian shadow fleet vessel in the early hours of this morning - Royal Marine Commandos and National Crime Agency board the ship in the channel, which will disrupt Putin’s war chest - Vessel will now be held and monitored off the South Coast as investigations continue In the first UK-led operation of its kind, the vessel SMYRTOS was boarded by Royal Marine Commandos and specially trained law enforcement officers from the National Crime Agency, despite Russia’s best efforts to evade sanctions and continue fuelling its barbaric war with Ukraine”

GOV.UK

Reuters reported that the measures were having an impact, saying Russia’s oil and gas revenues declined by 24 percent in 2025 compared with the previous year, while the UK and other countries pledged to crack down on sanctions-busting shadow-fleet shipments.

The UK government said the Smyrtos would be held and monitored off the South Coast of England as investigations continue, and it described the action as taking place in international waters and in accordance with domestic and international law.

The Guardian said the Smyrtos was anchored off the coast of Dorset near Weymouth and would be monitored for environmental or safety concerns, while it also reported that tracking data showed other shadow vessels turning around to avoid the Dover strait on Sunday.

The operation also drew a legal and political response, with the Al Jazeera report noting that Putin has condemned the capture of Russia-linked vessels as “piracy,” and with the UK and other countries continuing to frame the shadow fleet as a sanctions-evasion mechanism.