French authorities are investigating a ship linked to the Russian shadow fleet, which was also detained in the Baltic Sea this year, ERR News reports.
The Benin-flagged oil tanker Boracay is on the list of sanctions against Russia by the UK and the European Union. It previously used the name Kiwala and was detained by Estonian authorities on the 11th of April.
The French navy said in a statement that a report had been filed with the Brest prosecutor’s office about alleged violations by the Boracay, and an investigation was underway. It was launched after the crew failed to provide evidence of the ship’s flag and did not follow orders. According to the ship traffic monitoring website MarineTraffic, the ship left the port of Primorsk in Russia on the 20th of September and sailed from the Baltic Sea through the Danish Strait to the North Sea and then to the Lamas Strait.
There have been suggestions that
the ship was in the Danish Strait at a time when it could have served as a launch site for drones,
which caused air traffic to be suspended at several Danish airports.
The UK and the EU imposed sanctions on the crude oil tanker in October 2024 and February 2025. The EU has indicated that the tanker is involved in the transport of Russian oil.
Estonia released the ship on the 26th of April, after it was detained for sailing without a valid national flag. At that time, the inspection found more than 40 violations. The Boracay is part of a so-called shadow fleet that transports Russian oil, whose ships have no known owner, no valid insurance, and are typically more than 20 years old. The ship that was seized is currently off the west coast of France.
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