Smuggling, espionage, and sabotage: how Russia uses a ghost fleet to evade Western sanctions
Ghost ships smuggling Russian, Iranian, and Venezuelan oil are expanding their networks and threatening Europe's underwater infrastructure
“Russia has created a parallel fleet of tankers that allows it to circumvent sanctions,” says Benjamin Hilgenstock, chief economist at the Kyiv School of Economics Institute.
“But they are also old, poorly maintained, and unlikely to be adequately insured against oil spills.Furthermore, roughly three-quarters of Russia's maritime oil exports must depart from ports in the Baltic and Black Seas, meaning these vessels transit European waters several times a day,” he adds.
Rusty Ships Sailing Under Little-Known Flags
Of these, 50% carry only crude oil and refined products.
Russians, 20% only Iranians, and 10% only Venezuelans; but the remaining 20% ??are not affiliated with any particular country and transport oil produced by sanctioned more than one of the sanctioned countries.
The largest, working for Russia, Iran, and Venezuela, sail mainly to India and China, the world's most populous countries and the largest maritime importers. of oil and refined products.
Smaller buyers of Russian oil include Turkey, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates.
To cover their tracks, the vessels of the ghost fleet:
The number of vessels flying false flags increased by at least 65% in the first eight months of 2025, according to maritime analytics firm Windward, which estimates the clandestine fleet now numbers 1,300 vessels.
Flag registration services have also seen a boom. Many are simply scams. And while others are technically legal, the issuing countries are new to this sector and lack the will or capacity to monitor the use of their flags.
“Under global shipping regulations, flag states are responsible for ensuring compliance with technical standards and that oil spill insurance is adequate,” says Hilgenstock.
“However, when it comes to the Russian ghost fleet, we are talking about jurisdictions that simply cannot be trusted to perform this function,” he adds.
Threats to global security
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