In connection with the JEF Leaders’ Summit in Tallinn on December 16, a group of coastal states around the Baltic Sea and the North Sea announced that they will begin regularly inspecting the insurance certificates of oil tankers used by Russia.
The United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Poland and Estonia have agreed on joint measures by carrying out regular inspections of shadow fleet vessels to check their insurance coverage for oil spills.
Inspections will be carried along the route used by the shadow fleet through the English Channel, the Danish Straits and the Gulf of Finland. In addition, further sanctions will be imposed against oil tankers belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet.
Finland started inspections of vessel insurance certificates on voluntary basis on December 11. The UK began carrying out inspections in October, while Estonia has been inspecting tankers anchoring in its exclusive economic zone since the summer. The other countries in the group are getting ready to start inspections.
“Oil tankers used by Russia present considerable environmental risks. The accident involving two tankers in the Black Sea this weekend is a stark example of what can happen when these risks materialise,” said Finland’s minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen.
Valtonen emphasised that Finland has taken measures to minimise the risks.
“Finland began carrying out inspections of insurance certificates for the oil tankers on voluntary basis last week to make sure they have sufficient insurance coverage. Vessels can be added to the sanctions lists of the EU and other countries in the sanctions coalition on the basis of certain criteria. The 15th sanctions package adopted today by the EU Foreign Affairs Council adds 52 shadow vessels to the list,” Valtonen said.
High-risk vessels have already been sanctioned by the EU, the United Kingdom and the United States.
