Dozens of Russia shadow fleet vessels enter UK waters after Starmer warning as HMS Prince of Wales begins op

Persistent Russian vessels carrying sanctioned cargo have been spotted in British waters.

The BBC reports that almost 200 of Vladimir Putin’s “shadow fleet” vessels have entered UK over the past seven weeks. Numbers were tracked since prime minister Sir Keir Starmer threatened Moscow and gave the green light for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines to board such ships, but no direct actions have materialised thus far.

Various Portsmouth-based warships have shadowed Russian convoys of frigates and shadow fleet vessels to track their movements, with some operations lasting just over a month. The BBC said 184 UK-sanctioned vessels have made 238 journeys through British waters since the prime minister’s warning.

The government has not publicly stated if any ships have been boarded. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the Royal Navy and other forces are “disrupting and deterring” the vessels. Each sanctioned ship entered the UK’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) - an area that reaches up to 200 nautical miles (230 miles; 370km) from the coastline. Most of these were through the English Channel.

The BBC said ships briefly crossed into UK territorial waters on 94 occasions. This is a smaller zone that extends up to 12 nautical miles (14 miles; 23km) from the coast. Moscow’s shadow fleet is used to fund its illegal invasion of Ukraine, with ships carrying oil and other exports to evade international sanctions.

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These restrictions make it illegal for these ships to enter British ports, and blocks UK firms and individuals from giving them financial benefits, insurance policies, or brokerage services. The BBC said the vast majority of these ships were oil tankers, 173, alongside 10 liquified natural gas cargo vessel and one “multipurpose offshore vessel”. One of these vessels, Universal, travelled alongside the frigate RFN Admiral Grigorovich - tracked by HMS Mersey and other Royal Navy ships.

Tracking Russian ships have been considered routine operations for Royal Navy sailors, but given the current geopolitical climate, they are becoming more frequent and important. First Sea Lord General Sir Gwyn Jenkins previously warned that the Royal Navy needs to modernise and form a hybrid force of conventional warships and autonomous vessels to meet Moscow’s burgeoning fleet.

HMS Prince of Wales has left Scotland and has begun operating in the North Atlantic. Alongside Type 45 destroyer HMS Duncan and RFA Tidespring, they will join Nato’s Exercise Tamber Shield before leading Operation Firecrest. The mission involves various military patrols in the North Atlantic and High North in response to increased Russian activity.