A total of 114 Russian shadow fleet oil tankers are being forced to change their flags of operation as the U.S. and U.K. tighten sanctions on Moscow’s shipping activities, Bloomberg reported on January 23.
The Barbados ship registry announced that by the end of January, it will require 46 vessels to remove the Barbadian flag due to sanctions imposed by the U.K. Fourteen of these vessels are also under U.S. sanctions.
Similarly, Panama’s ship registry confirmed earlier this month that it has begun de-listing 68 vessels sanctioned by the U.S.
While these ships are expected to find new flags, many Russian-affiliated vessels have been repeatedly forced to register with less reputable entities since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
This latest enforcement measure comes on the heels of broader sanctions introduced earlier this month targeting Russia’s energy sector.
Barbados, previously a preferred flag of convenience for Russian shipping due to its strong maritime safety standards, has now aligned with U.K. sanctions.
Giovanni Ciniglio, CEO of the Barbados Maritime Ship Registry, explained that while Barbados itself does not impose sanctions on Russia, it complies with U.K. regulations due to its ties with London. As a result, vessels sanctioned by both the U.S. and U.K. will lose their Barbadian registration.
Some of these de-flagged ships have already been re-registered under flags of other countries, including Tanzania and São Tomé and Príncipe, according to the Equasis marine database.
Panama, another major player in global shipping, has also intensified its enforcement of sanctions. The country recently updated its policies to align with those of the U.S., EU, U.K., and United Nations, leading to the removal of 68 sanctioned ships from its registry.
Reports suggest that recent U.S. sanctions on Russian oil, introduced under President Joe Biden’s administration, could reduce Russia’s oil and gas revenues by one-fifth by 2025.
