Italian-led EU Force boards Russian tanker in Mediterranean Sea
An Italian Navy-led European Union force has boarded a Russian tanker in the Mediterranean Sea, claiming the operation was part of efforts to monitor illicit arms and oil trafficking in the region.
On Sunday morning, troops on the Italian vessel Thaon di Revel boarded the tanker Toa Payoh, belonging to Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet” subject to EU sanctions, according to Italy’s Defense Ministry.
The oil tanker was boarded as part of Operation IRINI, the EU mission monitoring arms and oil trafficking in the Mediterranean, it said.
The inspection, the ministry claimed, aimed to verify the ship’s nationality, as it was flying the Cameroonian flag at the time of interception.
The two-hour operation was carried out “smoothly and safely,” the ministry said. Verification of the ship’s documents is currently underway. The ministry did not say whether the tanker had been officially detained.
An official familiar with the matter said that the EU mission does not have the authority to seize the ship during such inspections, meaning that the Toa Payoh was not detained. However, its documentation was collected during the boarding of the vessel and is being reviewed.
The source added that further action could be taken if necessary.
The EU forces' inspection was carried out with the support of a Greek vessel and a Polish maritime patrol aircraft.
Brussels has imposed sanctions on hundreds of vessels it claims are part of Russia’s so-called “shadow fleet.”
The vessels are used to circumvent EU oil export sanctions imposed on Moscow following Russia’s ongoing special military operation in Ukraine, which began in 2022.
Operation IRINI was launched in 2020, with the original aim of enforcing the United Nations arms embargo on Libya.
Since then, Brussels, with the help of EU member states, has expanded the scope of the mission, allowing it to conduct inspections of the ships it says it suspects of transporting illegal commodities.
On July 20, EU forces boarded Cameroonian oil tanker MV South Star in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea on the pretext of “flag verification.” Russia has slammed the interception of Russian-linked ships as an illegal act, likening it to “piracy.”
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