LONDON (dpa-AFX) - The United Kingdom has imposed sanctions on 10 oil tankers in Russia's 'shadow fleet,' a group of ships that use illicit practices to avoid sanctions on Russian oil.
The new sanctions target Russian oil revenues, which is President Vladimir Putin's most critical source of funding for the war against Ukraine.
It is estimated that income from oil exports account for roughly a quarter of the Russian budget in 2023.
Putin is using the 'shadow fleet' as a desperate attempt to undermine sanctions by UK and G7 nations and continue unfettered trade in Russian oil.
The high-volume ships, which operate around the clock to transport as much Russian oil as possible, will be barred from entering UK ports and will be refused access to the UK Ship Register.
Three of the oil tankers targeted Wednesday - Nicolay Zuyev, NS Asia and Zaliv Aniva - have collectively carried more than $5 billion worth of Russian oil since the invasion of Ukraine began, according to the UK Foreign Office.
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Russia has been forced to spend more than $8 billion amassing this shadow fleet. 'But with sanctioned tankers loitering and unable to load oil, we are determined to make Putin's investment an expensive misstep for the Kremlin. Our action will help to counter Russian attempts to undermine and dodge economic sanctions.'
Previous UK sanctions against individual shadow ships have left them idling outside ports, and unable to carry on their trade in Russian oil.
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