President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree implementing the National Security and Defense Council’s decision to impose sanctions against 91 maritime vessels belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet. According to Ukrinform, this was reported by the press service of the President’s Office. PromPolitInform reports.
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree implementing the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions against 91 maritime vessels belonging to Russia’s shadow fleet,” the statement reads.
The President’s Office notes that Russia used these vessels to transport oil and petroleum products from Russian ports, specifically Novorossiysk, Ust-Luga, and Primorsk, to third countries. The Office notes that this occurred in circumvention of sanctions imposed by the European Union, the G7, and other countries, as evidenced by monitoring in the Black, Red, and Baltic Seas.
It was also reported that the sanctioned vessels were sailing under the flags of approximately 20 countries. Only one of them was Russian, while the others were flagged as Panama, Liberia, Cameroon, Barbados, the Marshall Islands, Hong Kong, Sierra Leone, Tonga, Palau, Guinea, Comoros, the Bahamas, Indonesia, Malawi, Guinea, and Eswatini.
“Ukraine will share relevant information with these countries and will also work with partners to further synchronize sanctions in their jurisdictions. Twenty-seven vessels from this list are already under sanctions by their partners: the United States, Great Britain, Switzerland, and the European Union. Work on imposing sanctions on the remaining 64 will continue,” the publication notes.
The Presidential Office notes that imposing sanctions on the shadow fleet is a priority, as it allows it to put pressure on anyone transporting Russian oil and thereby helping Russia obtain funds to finance its war against Ukraine. “Shadow fleet tankers are a key tool for circumventing oil sanctions, so their identification and sanctions against them must be swift and without exception. Each such vessel must be considered a component of the financing of the Russian military machine,” noted Vladislav Vlasyuk, Advisor and Presidential Commissioner for Sanctions Policy.
Decree No. 121/2026 “On the Decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine dated February 12, 2026, ‘On the Application of Personal Special Economic and Other Restrictive Measures (Sanctions)'” has also been published on the website of the Office of the President.
The document enters into force on the day of publication.
