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French Foreign Minister Confirms Release of “Grinch” Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker After Fine
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French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot has confirmed that an oil tanker suspected of being part of Russia’s shadow fleet was released after its owner paid a substantial fine, Barrot said in a post on X on February 17.
The authorities allowed the vessel, named Grinch, to depart French waters following payment of a penalty worth “several million euros,” he wrote.
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“Circumventing European sanctions comes at a price. Russia will no longer be able to finance its war with impunity through a ghost fleet off our coasts,” he stated.
Contourner les sanctions européennes a un prix. La Russie ne financera plus impunément sa guerre via une flotte fantôme au large de nos côtes. Le pétrolier Grinch va quitter les eaux françaises après plusieurs millions d’euros versés et 3 semaines d’immobilisation coûteuse à… pic.twitter.com/Z4LI0l65e4
— Jean-Noël Barrot (@jnbarrot) February 17, 2026
The tanker, which had set sail from the Russian port of Murmansk under a Comoros flag, was seized in the Mediterranean last month and escorted to the port of Marseille amid suspicion that it was part of the clandestine network of vessels used to bypass Western restrictions on Russian oil exports. Authorities said the Grinch’s owning company was ordered to pay the fine after failing to justify its flag registration, Reuters reported.
The so-called shadow fleet refers to a network of ageing or obscurely owned tankers that have been used to transport Russian crude despite sanctions introduced by the EU, the United States and other Western nations after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. These vessels often change names and flags to avoid detection and enforcement, complicating global efforts to curb Russia’s oil revenue.
Barrot also noted that the Grinch spent three weeks immobilised near Marseille’s Fos-sur-Mer while the penalty was settled, calling the detention “costly” for its operators and urging continued enforcement of sanctions against similar vessels.
Earlier, the United Kingdom had initiated discussions with European allies on the possible seizure of oil tankers linked to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, as part of general efforts to tighten pressure on Moscow’s war economy.
UK Defense Secretary John Healey had met with counterparts from Baltic and Nordic countries to explore legal and operational options for detaining vessels suspected of circumventing sanctions.
European nations are not the only ones that are acting against Russian sanctioned oil tankers. Previously, India’s Coast Guard had detained three tankers sanctioned by the United States for transporting Iranian oil.
The US also seized the Olina tanker in the Caribbean near Trinidad earlier, marking the fifth such interdiction of vessels in recent weeks as part of Washington’s effort to tighten control over Venezuelan oil exports.
According to maritime data, the Olina was falsely flying the flag of Timor Leste, and had previously sailed from Venezuela before returning to the region.
-111f0e5095e02c02446ffed57bfb0ab1.jpeg "Photo of Roman Kohanets")
