EU Naval Mission Boards Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker Toa Payoh

A European Union naval mission led by Italy, EUNAVFOR MED, boarded the Toa Payoh tanker, which is part of Russia’s “shadow fleet.”

This was reported by Reuters.

It is the second such operation in less than two weeks as Europe increases scrutiny of vessels suspected of helping Moscow evade oil sanctions.

The Toa Payoh tanker, which is under EU sanctions, was approached west of the Sicilian island of Pantelleria while sailing from Benin to Istanbul.

According to a source familiar with the operation, the vessel switched to the Cameroonian flag only last week.

Maritime authorities launched an inspection to verify whether the tanker was legally entitled to operate under the Cameroonian flag and whether its registration documents were valid.

The source said that the EU naval mission EUNAVFOR MED did not have the authority to detain vessels, and the Toa Payoh was therefore not detained.

However, documents collected during the boarding are still being reviewed and may be used by national authorities for a possible future seizure of the vessel if necessary.

The ship’s captain initially refused to cooperate with the EU mission, prompting a team of Italian servicemen to board the vessel from a helicopter launched from the operation’s flagship, the Thaon di Revel.

The inspection, conducted with support from a Greek vessel and a Polish maritime patrol aircraft, lasted about two hours and was successfully completed, the ministry said.

Earlier, on July 22, it was reported that EU law enforcement authorities detained the Russian shadow fleet vessel MV South Star on suspicion of operating under a false Cameroonian flag.