As Russia continues to exploit gaps in Western sanctions to finance its brutal war against Ukraine, civil society groups, including Razom We Stand, B4Ukraine Coalition, CREA, KSE Institute and UK Friends of Ukraine, are urging the EU, UK, Canada and the US to align their sanctions enforcement and dismantle Russia’s shadow fleet of oil tankers.
A new briefing note prepared by Razom We Stand and its partners highlights that Russia’s shadow fleet consists of at least 848 tankers transporting crude oil and oil products. Alarmingly, only 338 vessels (40%) have been sanctioned by at least one of the key sanctioning jurisdictions (EU, UK, Canada and US), while just 25 vessels are sanctioned by all four jurisdictions. This fragmented approach leaves critical gaps that Russia exploits to continue selling its fossil fuels and replenishing its war chest.
In the most recent year of Russia’s full-scale invasion, shadow tankers transported a third of Russia’s total fossil fuel export value (EUR 83 bn), highlighting their importance in financing the Kremlin war chest. Additionally, shadow tankers have inadequate or dubious maritime insurance, meaning that they place a huge environmental and economic risk on coastal states that could be forced to cover the astronomical cost (up to EUR 1.5 bn) of clean-up in the event of an oil spill.
“Every day that Russia’s shadow fleet continues to operate is another day that Europe and its allies fund Putin’s war machine. The EU, UK, Canada and the US must stop acting separately and sanction these vessels together. The 16th EU sanctions package covered less than 9% of the fleet—that is completely unacceptable. Partial sanctions will not stop Putin’s war machine. Only a unified, airtight sanctions regime can cut off the billions that Russia earns from its fossil fuel exports. We urge leaders to establish a coalition of the willing and not to wait for the next EU sanctions package — this action must happen now to neutralise the shadow fleet and take meaningful steps to stop Russia’s aggression. Every barrel of oil that Russia sells, bypassing international sanctions, means more bombs, more missiles, and more Ukrainian lives lost,” said Svitlana Romanko, Founder and Executive Director of Razom We Stand.
“Sanctioning more vessels more quickly means saving more lives. Targeted designations against shadow fleet vessels have significantly disrupted their operations, but the minimal overlap of sanctions between countries to undermine their impact. To hit Putin where it hurts, the EU and its allies must stop shadow tankers,” said Nezir Sinani, Executive Director at B4Ukraine.
“Shadow tankers must be sanctioned by the EU and its allies with utmost urgency, as they pose two paramount crises. Firstly, shadow tankers are financing Russia’s war in Ukraine, having transported a third of its fossil fuel exports (EUR 83 billion) in the most recent year of the invasion. Secondly, these tankers transport Russian oil with insufficient maritime insurance, meaning the cost of cleaning up an oil spill from these hazardous vessels could fall on coastal states—potentially reaching up to EUR 1.5 billion. Evidence shows that when both the EU and UK sanction the same tanker, it significantly increases the impact of these measures, which is why the entire shadow fleet must be sanctioned by all of Ukraine’s allies immediately,” said Isaac Levi, Europe-Russia Policy & Energy Analysis Team Lead.
“Ukraine’s allies, including the EU, must aggressively pursue their sanctions of shadow tankers in the coming months – and ensure that the entire fleet is removed from operations. In addition, it is critical to incentivize compliance of third-country actors by taking enforcement action against anyone continuing to interact with sanctioned ships and their cargo,” said Benjamin Hilgenstock, Head of Macroeconomic Research and Strategy, Kyiv School of Economics Institute.
“Research by Razom We Stand shows that the UK and our European counterparts need to go further to stop Russia’s shadow fleet fuelling Kremlin’s war machine murdering Ukrainians. The UK and EU have made progress in sanctioning vessels which are part of this fleet, but there are far more vessels and individuals that could and should be sanctioned by the UK and EU, to finally sink this shadow fleet,” said Imogen Payter, UK Friends of Ukraine Director.
Key Findings from the Briefing:
Russia’s shadow fleet consists of at least 848 tankers: 463 crude oil carriers and 385 oil product carriers.
The 16th EU sanctions package designated only 74 ships — impacting less than 9% of the total fleet.
While 338 tankers have been sanctioned by at least one Western jurisdiction, this covers less than 40% of the fleet — leaving the majority free to operate.
Shockingly, only 25 vessels are sanctioned by all four major jurisdictions (EU, UK, US, Canada) — highlighting dangerous enforcement gaps.
We are calling on the EU and G7 nations to:
Establish a Joint Aligned Vessel Sanctions List: Designate vessels that have already been sanctioned by one or more coalition members to ensure full coverage across all jurisdictions.
Ramp Up Sanctions Enforcement Resources: Increase staffing and technical capacity to monitor and investigate compliance with oil trade restrictions.
Sanction Vessels Violating Price Cap and Export Bans: A new joint framework should be enacted for a rapid scale-up beyond fixed sanctions packages. Prioritise targeting vessels that breach the G7 price cap, transport oil from occupied territories, and engage in Russian energy projects.
Update Legal Frameworks: introduce necessary changes to legislation to ensure accountability of third-country entities. Russia’s war in Ukraine is fueled by fossil fuel revenues, and as long as shadow fleet tankers continue to operate, Putin will continue his destruction of Ukraine. Western nations must work together to close these gaps immediately and impose airtight, coordinated sanctions before more lives are lost.