An oil tanker suspected of belonging to the Russian shadow fleet has been seized in the North Sea in a joint Belgian-French operation.

Belgian and French armed forces have seized an oil/chemical tanker in the North Sea alleged to belong to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet accused of transporting Russian oil in defiance of Western-imposed sanctions.

“Over the past few hours, our armed forces, with the support of the French Defence, have boarded an oil tanker allegedly belonging to the Russian shadow fleet,” Belgian minister of defense and foreign trade Theo Francken wrote on social media platform X.

He said, “Operation Blue Intruder” was carried out “by a team of exceptionally brave service members.”

Providing further details on the outcome of the mission, Francken stated that the intercepted tanker was “being escorted to the port of Zeebrugge, where it will be seized.”

Belgian deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs Maxime Prévot said this operation was carried out within the International Task Force on the Shadow Fleet, alongside G7, Nordic and Baltic partners.

“Today, a vessel from Russia’s shadow fleet was intercepted in the North Sea,” Prévot wrote on X, thanking Belgian special forces for their “exceptional professionalism and courage.”

Announcing the raid, French president Emmanuel Macron called it “a major blow to the shadow fleet.”

Posting on X, he wrote: “In the North Sea, our French Navy helicopters helped last night in the boarding by Belgian forces of an oil tanker under international sanctions.”

“Europeans are determined to cut off the sources of funding for Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine by enforcing sanctions.”

The operation referenced by Macron was part of a broader maritime enforcement effort in which Belgian special forces successfully boarded and took control of an oil tanker allegedly belonging to the “shadow fleet” utilised by Moscow to bypass international restrictions.

The vessel was intercepted in the North Sea during the early hours of Sunday.

Previous seizures of tankers carrying Russian oil have been called “piracy” by the Kremlin.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged European lawmakers to update legislation to allow authorities not only to board but also to confiscate vessels from Russia’s “shadow fleet.”

In a post on X, Zelenskyy said: “This particular vessel has long been under US, EU, and UK sanctions, but nonetheless continued to illegally transport Russian oil using a false flag and forged documents. We welcome this strong action against Moscow’s floating purse and thank France for supporting the operation.

“It is also important to modernize European legislation so that tankers carrying Russian oil are not just stopped but seized, with their oil repurposed for Europe’s security.”

Belgium’s prime minister Bart De Wever congratulated the armed forces on their professional and decisive conduct during Sunday’s operation, and thanked the French partners for providing their “essential support.”