The UK is set to announce a fresh wave of sanctions against Russia’s shadow fleet amid increased pressure from London on Russia’s economy.
The government is imposing fresh sanctions targeting up to 100 oil tankers accused of shipping Russian oil in the face of international sanctions, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Friday.
The British government said Putin’s shadow fleet is responsible for carrying more than $24 billion worth of cargo since the start of 2024.
This latest move comes after the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) activated an advanced UK-led reaction system, known as Nordic Warden in January, to track potential threats to undersea infrastructure and monitor the Russian shadow fleet, following reported damage to a major undersea cable in the Baltic Sea.
22 areas of interest, including parts of the English Channel, North Sea, Kattegat, and Baltic, are currently being monitored from the JEF’s operational headquarters in Northwood, UK.
Speaking ahead of an enhanced (JEF) partnership with Ukraine, Starmer said the move would increase pressure on Moscow.
“The threat from Russia to our national security cannot be underestimated, that is why we will do everything in our power to destroy his shadow fleet operation, starve his war machine of oil revenues and protect the subsea infrastructure that we rely on for our everyday lives,” UK’s prime minister Keir Starmer said.
The JEF is expected to further support Ukrainian Armed Forces through intensive training exercises, increasing interoperability across military platforms and enhancing countering disinformation support.
The Joint Expeditionary Force is comprised of 10 like-minded nations, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Netherlands, Sweden and the UK as the Framework Nation.
The British government explained that due to Western sanctions, Russia’s oil and gas revenues have fallen every year since 2022, losing over a third of its value in three years.
“My government will safeguard working people from paying the price from the costly threat Putin’s fleet poses to UK critical national infrastructure and the environment,” Starmer noted.
