- Category
- Latest news
UK PM Starmer Unveils Largest Sanctions Ever Against Russia’s Shadow Fleet Yet
- Authors
![Amira_barkhush]( "Photo of Amira Barkhush")
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the largest sanctions package against Russia to date on May 9 via the social media platform X.
He emphasized that Russia’s threat to the United Kingdom’s national security must not be underestimated.
“To ramp up the pressure on Putin, I’m announcing the largest package of sanctions yet,” the Prime Minister stated.
The threat Russia poses to our national security cannot be underestimated.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) May 9, 2025
To ramp up the pressure on Putin, I’m announcing the largest package of sanctions yet.
I will always do what it takes to safeguard working people.
Security at home. Strength abroad.
Earlier reports revealed that the UK had prepared sanctions targeting 100 tankers from Russia’s shadow fleet .
“Russia’s shadow fleet will be hit with the largest ever sanctions package today [May 9], ramping up pressure on Putin and protecting UK and European critical national infrastructure,” the statement read.
According to the press release, the UK government will sanction up to 100 oil tankers linked to the so-called shadow fleet and “responsible for carrying more than $24 billion worth of cargo since the start of 2024.”
Starmer said that the threat from Russia to UK’s national security cannot be underestimated, and that the country will do everything in its power to destroy the shadow fleet operation, “starve his [Putin’s] war machine of oil revenues and protect the subsea infrastructure that we rely on for our everyday lives.”
“Every step we take to increase pressure on Russia and achieve a just and sustainable peace in Ukraine is another step towards security and prosperity in the UK,” Starmer added.
The press release highlights Putin’s reliance on the shadow fleet to maintain oil revenues and sustain the Russian oil sector amidst international sanctions.
“Thanks to Western sanctions, Russia’s oil and gas revenues have fallen every year since 2022, losing over a third of its value in three years,” the statement read.
On November 7, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the amount of funds the Russian Federation receives from the use of the shadow fleet is many times greater than the aid Ukraine gets from all allies.
-21d0b63c17f6020e4df75f6c6f9a2f4f.jpg "Photo of Ivan Khomenko")
