German Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Berobok criticized Russia for the use of emergency oil tankers, which are allegedly belonging to the so -called “shadow fleet” intended for bypassing international sanctions.
In her written statement, Berobok accused Russia “of creating a threat to European security not only by war against Ukraine, but also by other provocative actions.”
“Russia threatens the security of Europe not only by its aggressive war against Ukraine, which violates international law, but also through cut cables, displaced border bucks, disinformation campaigns, jamming GPS signals and the use of emergency oil tankers,” said Berobok.
The Minister emphasized that Russian President Vladimir Putin, “operating rusty tankers, not only violates sanctions, but also threatens the ecology and tourism in the region of the Baltic Sea.”
“The adoption of such consequences is part of the Russian plan. Those who turn a blind eye to this threat are as negligent as those who described the Nord Stream 2 as an exclusively economic project. That is why in recent months we and our partners have achieved the inclusion of the Russian shadow fleet in the sanctions lists. Today, under the sanctions of the EU are more than 70 ships. Europe is strong. Baltic countries, EU and NATO are united before this threat, ”she added.
In the Baltic Sea, north of the German Island of Rügen, a drifting ship was recorded – an 18 -year -old tanker 248 meters long. A vessel under the Panama flag, transporting 99 thousand tons of oil from the port of Ust-Luga on the Russian-Estonian border to the Egyptian port of Port-Said, lost the possibility of maneuvering.
It is believed that the Eventin tanker, which has set on a flight on January 6, is part of the Russian shadow fleet used to circumvent sanctions.