French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday morning that the French Navy seized on Sunday in Atlantic Ocean waters an oil tanker “under international sanctions” that had departed from Russia, before calling it “unacceptable” that these vessels try to evade restrictions to “finance” the invasion of Ukraine.
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“The French Navy seized another oil tanker subject to international sanctions yesterday morning, the Tagor, which had sailed from Russia. Our determination is unbreakable and absolute,” the president wrote in a message posted on his social media. The operation took place “on the high seas” and “with the support of numerous partners, including the United Kingdom, in strict compliance with the Law of the Sea. It is unacceptable that ships evade international sanctions, violate maritime law, and finance the war that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for more than four years.”
A few days ago, the Tagor ―flying the flag of Madagascar― was sailing off the northwest coast of Norway, according to the last position recorded by the MarineTraffic tracking platform.
“These ships, which do not respect the most basic maritime navigation rules, also pose a threat to the environment and to everyone’s safety,” Macron concluded. In the same vein, the Chief of Staff of the French Army, Fabien Mandon, stated that the seizure took place after a “flag verification” operation. This is the fourth interception of this kind since September of last year.
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Hours later, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the incident “piracy.” “We consider these actions illegal, bordering on international piracy. We absolutely disagree with the claims that this corresponds to international law,” he added. Moscow, however, has shown a complete disregard for international legality in recent years, especially since the start of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Russian authorities have announced, through Peskov, that they will take measures to ensure the protection of their assets.
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