Britain provided tracking and monitoring support for a French operation to board a sanctioned Russian oil tanker in a bid to choke off the funds that fuel Russia's invasion of Ukraine, UK defence minister John Healey said on Thursday.
Healey said this support included a vessel, HMS Dagger, monitoring the tanker as it passed through the Straits of Gibraltar. The tanker, named the Grinch, is subject to UK and European sanctions for facilitating trade in sanctioned oil and forms part of a growing web of the so-called "shadow-fleet."
"Deterring, disrupting and degrading the Russian shadow fleet is a priority for this government," Healey said in a statement.
"I can confirm that the UK has provided tracking and monitoring in support of the French operation to board the tanker Grinch."
He said Britain and its allies were stepping up their response to so-called shadow-fleet vessels, which he described as helping finance Russian President Vladimir Putin's war against Ukraine.
President Emmanuel Macron said earlier on Thursday that the French Navy had boarded an oil tanker coming from Russia that was subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag.
He said the operation was conducted on the high seas in the Mediterranean with support from several allies and in strict compliance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
A judicial investigation had been opened and the vessel diverted, the French president said, adding that France was determined to enforce sanctions.
Britain's Ministry of Defence said it routinely tracks suspected Russian shadow-fleet activity and shares information with allies, adding that the country has sanctioned 544 such vessels to date.
Reporting by Sam Tabahriti, Editing by Timothy Heritage and Susan Fenton
