The French Navy has detained the oil tanker Tagor, which is under international sanctions, in the Atlantic Ocean. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the detention.
The vessel was stopped on the morning of May 31 while traveling from Russia, Macron said. The operation was carried out jointly with France’s partners, including the United Kingdom, in strict accordance with maritime law.
Macron said it was unacceptable for ships to circumvent international sanctions, violate maritime law, and finance the war that Russia had been waging against Ukraine for more than four years. Vessels that ignore even the most basic rules of maritime navigation, he added, also pose a threat to the environment and to general security.
The tanker Tagor is under sanctions from the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine. The vessel fell under British restrictions in February 2026. A statement from the British government said that London classifies the tanker as part of Russia’s ‘shadow fleet.’ According to European Union data, the tanker transports oil and petroleum products produced in Russia. The U.S. sanctions list states that the tanker sails under a Panamanian flag.
France has detained tankers from Russia’s “shadow fleet” before. In March, the country’s navy detained the tanker Deyna, which was traveling from Murmansk under a Mozambican flag. However, a month later French authorities allowed the Deyna to leave the port of Marseille.
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