Russia proposes blowing up “shadow fleet” tankers in case of detention

The Federation Council has proposed mining “shadow” tankers and blowing them up in case of detention.

This idea was proposed by senator and former head of Roscosmos Dmitry Rogozin, The Moscow Times reports.

He proposed installing explosives on civilian vessels associated with Russia in order to be able to destroy them in case of capture. Thus, he reacted to the detention by Great Britain of the tanker Smyrtos of the “shadow fleet” of the Russian Federation.

“We need to mine the tankers we use. The initiative should take place in the event of the arrival of the relevant commands or if the tanker deviates from the route and is forced to enter a foreign port. If they blow up under their noses several times with an oil spill and the corresponding environmental consequences, they will immediately change their minds,” Rogozin said.

Meanwhile, the Rybar channel, which is close to the Russian Defense Ministry, called the detention of the Smyrtos a “precedent” that “shows that the conditions for the shadow fleet are becoming increasingly difficult.” It admitted that it was impossible to provide all such vessels with military escort, and suggested using unmanned boats and private security to prevent delays.

As a reminder, on June 14, Britain detained the Russian “shadow fleet” tanker “Smyrtos”. After that, the “shadow fleet” tankers began to avoid the English Channel.