Russian president Vladimir Putin has sharply denounced France’s recent seizure of an oil tanker, branding the action as “piracy.”

The Kremlin dismissed claims of wrongdoing and denied that the vessel was carrying military cargo or violating international laws.

“This is piracy. The tanker was seized in neutral waters without any grounds. They were probably searching for some military cargoes like the UAVs (drones). There was none obviously,” Putin stated.

“For French authorities, it’s a way to distract its citizens from domestic problems.”

Last week, French authorities have arrested two crew members of the oil tanker.

“Thanks to our Navy commandos and to the crews of the French Navy who intervened this weekend on board a Russian shadow fleet tanker, currently anchored off Saint-Nazaire,” French prime minister Sébastien Lecornu wrote on X on Thursday.

“Their action contributed to the detention of two members of its crew.” The tanker, however, detained by the French navy was heading towards the Suez Canal Friday, according to data from maritime websites.

Drones have been sighted across Denmark, including over military sites, since Sept 22, prompting brief closures at several airports.

More recently, it is thought that some drones violating European airspace may be being operated from the vessels.

While Danish officials have been cautious not to directly accuse Russia without conclusive evidence, they have not ruled out the possibility – though Moscow denies responsibility.

Danish authorities caution that while no direct military threat exists, Russia’s tactics aim to impose pressure without crossing into armed conflict.

On 3 October, the Danish Defence Intelligence Service (DDIS) published an updated assessment of the hybrid threat to Denmark. “The threat of Russian malign influence operations against Denmark is low. The hybrid threat from Russia against NATO will highly likely increase in the coming years. The DDIS assesses that the overall threat of military provocations against NATO member states is high.”

These details are part of the new Danish Defence Intelligence Service (DDIS) assessment released on Friday.

Denmark’s intelligence service suggests that Russia will likely become more willing to intensify its hybrid attacks if the alliance fails to respond.

“Russia highly likely sees itself as being in conflict with the West, in which the hybrid means employed are kept below the threshold of armed conflict,” the report notes.

“The threat of conventional military attacks against Denmark is none. Russia views itself as being in conflict with the West and is preparing for a potential war with NATO. While no decision to initiate such a war has been made, Russia is building up its military and expanding its capabilities to make that decision. At present, Russia continues to seek to avoid actions that could trigger NATO’s Article 5. Nevertheless, it is highly likely that Russia will employ hybrid tactics to test and shift the threshold for what could invoke NATO’s collective defence under Article 5,” the report adds.