Macron 'cautious' over oil tanker suspected of being Russian ‘shadow fleet’

Suggestions oil tanker may have been used to launch drone flights over Danish airports

Off the French port of Saint-Nazaire, soldiers are onboard a tanker from Russia's so-called "shadow fleet". Damien MEYER / AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron held back from linking an oil tanker with mysterious drone flights over Danish airports on Wednesday, but said the ship had committed “serious offences”.

French authorities have been tight-lipped about the vessel, which is currently at anchor near the western city of Saint-Nazaire. The Brest prosecutor said on Tuesday that a probe had been opened after the crew failed to provide proof of the vessel's nationality and failed to comply with orders, but gave no further details.

Mr Macron said on Wednesday it was “a good thing” that France was investigating the oil tanker Boracay, which is suspected of belonging to the so-called shadow fleet involved in the Russian oil trade.

Pushpa or Boracay is a Benin-flagged vessel blacklisted by the European Union for being part of Russia's sanction-busting "shadow fleet". Damien MEYER / AFP

“There were some very serious offences committed by this crew, which justify the current judicial procedure,” Mr Macron said at an EU leaders' summit in Copenhagen.

According to the specialist website The Maritime Executive, the vessel is suspected of being involved in drone flights that disrupted air traffic in Denmark in September.

The publication said the tanker and other ships could have been used either as launch platforms or as decoys.

“I will remain very cautious,” Mr Macron said when asked about a possible link between the ship and drone flights, stressing the operation underlined the importance of European efforts to stop the “shadow fleet” of vessels aiding Russia to circumvent Western sanctions.

Mr Macron said the collective assessment was that Russia's shadow fleet contains 600 to 1,000 ships.

Shadow fleet tankers typically have opaque ownership and insurance and are often more than 20 years old.

The EU has placed sanctions on hundreds of ageing tankers used by Russia to circumvent oil export curbs imposed after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine to sap Moscow's war chest.

Among them is the Boracay, which was blacklisted in February under the name Kiwala. It was detained by Estonian authorities earlier this year for sailing without a valid country flag.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday it had no information about the vessel, but added the Russian military had to act sometimes to restore order when foreign countries had taken what spokesman Dmitry Peskov described as “provocative actions.”

It left the Russian port of Primorsk on September 20, according to MarineTraffic data. It sailed through the Baltic Sea and over the top of Denmark before entering the North Sea and transiting west through the Channel.

Ship tracking data show that the 2007-built tanker was being shadowed by a French warship after it rounded France's north-western tip, before altering course and heading east towards the French coast.

Hybrid war

Danish premier Mette Frederiksen on Wednesday urged Europe to step up its response to Russia's “hybrid war”, as she hosted EU leaders for defence talks held under tight security following mystery drone flights.

Thousands of police were on alert, civilian drones banned and reinforcements deployed from Nato allies to help protect the summit at the grand Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen.

“I hope that everybody recognises now that there is a hybrid war,” Ms Frederiksen said.

Denmark – which holds the EU's rotating presidency – has been rattled in recent days as unidentified drones shut down airports and flew near military sites.

Suspicions have pointed at Russia but so far no culprit has been definitively named.

Nonetheless the drone incidents have sharpened the focus on chinks in Europe's defences, after high-profile air incursions by Moscow in Poland and Estonia.

“We face the greatest security challenge since the end of the Second World War,” Ms Frederiksen said.

EU leaders in the Danish capital were pressing to flesh out details for priority defence projects, including a “drone wall” aimed at countering Russia's threat.

“It's a pattern, and this pattern is coming from Russia,” European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said.

“Russia tries to test us, but Russia also tries to sow division and anxiety in our societies. We will not let this happen.”

The EU says it wants to build a system of defences to detect, and ultimately take down, drones.

The bloc is looking to tap the war-tested expertise of Ukraine, whose President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will join for a broader gathering of European leaders on Thursday.

Danish frigate HDMS Esbern Snare patrols the water and the airspace at Copenhagen Airport. Getty Images

Confrontation

Wednesday's discussion was the latest step in the EU's efforts to get ready for a potential conflict with Russia by 2030 − as warnings swirl Moscow could look to attack in the coming years.

“We are in a confrontation with Russia,” Mr Macron said, pointing at Moscow's disinformation campaigns, cyber attacks and airspace violations.

He did not rule out downing a Russian fighter jet if it were to breach European airspace.

German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in an interview asked the French President if he was “in favour of shooting down a Russian fighter jet if it enters European airspace without authorisation”.

“In accordance with the doctrine of strategic ambiguity, I can tell you that nothing is ruled out,” Macron replied.

The 27-nation bloc has already come up with a €150 billion loan scheme to help fund defence spending, with the lion's share being snapped up by eastern countries.

Brussels has proposed countries now club together on four “flagship” projects − the drone wall, securing the eastern flank, missile defences and a space shield.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov criticised European plans for a drone wall. “As history has shown, erecting walls is always a bad thing,” Mr Peskov said.