Sanctioned Russian tanker enters Channel after UK shadow fleet crackdown

Forwarder, a Russian-flagged tanker sanctioned by the UK, the United States and the European Union in 2025, entered the English Channel on Wednesday evening broadcasting Dongying, China, as its final destination. Tracking data showed the ship sailing south after leaving Primorsk last week, a route that now sits at the center of a fast-moving test of how far Western authorities can go against Russia’s shadow fleet in crowded maritime corridors.

The vessel’s path matters because the Channel is not a remote enforcement zone but one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes. BBC Verify said Forwarder had changed its name twice since the UK first accused it of smuggling Russian oil, a reminder that identity shifts remain one of the fleet’s simplest evasions. MarineTraffic data showed the tanker under the destination code CNDGY for Dongying, while a Nato official told BBC Verify that Russia’s frigate Admiral Grigorovich had been assigned to escort sanctioned oil tankers, though it was not clear whether it was accompanying Forwarder.

The move came days after the UK’s first-led boarding of a shadow fleet vessel, the Smyrtos, in the early hours of 14 June. That six-hour operation was carried out by Royal Marine Commandos and National Crime Agency officers and supported by Chinook, Merlin Mk4 and Wildcat helicopters, an RAF P-8 aircraft, HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury. The Ministry of Defence said the ship would be held off the south coast for environmental or safety monitoring, and said the action was taken in close coordination with France.

The enforcement significance runs beyond a single boarding. The UK government said in March that British armed forces and law enforcement could board shadow fleet vessels in accordance with international law, giving authorities a legal basis to act more aggressively after years of watching sanctioned cargoes pass through Western waters. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the Smyrtos operation was intended to deliver another blow to Russia and show that those helping fund Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine cannot hide.

Lloyd’s List reported that Smyrtos had loaded 101,400 tonnes of Urals crude at Ust-Luga on 4 June and was headed for Sikka, India, before the boarding. It also said Cameroon had deregistered 36 shadow-fleet vessels, leaving Smyrtos without a flag after the country stripped registrations from dozens of ships. UK sanctions lists say IMO 9389100, the vessel also known as Smyrtos, is involved in carrying oil or oil products that originated in Russia from Russia to a third country.

BBC Verify said some sanctioned ships altered course to avoid the English Channel after the Smyrtos boarding, even as Forwarder still pushed through. With more than 700 vessels in the shadow fleet carrying about 75% of Russia’s sanctioned oil, the Channel is emerging as a critical enforcement front where identity signals, routing behavior and escort tactics are being watched as closely as the cargo itself.