Dozens of Russian shadow fleet tankers are idling in the Gulf of Finland as they wait for oil terminals damaged by Ukrainian air strikes to resume operations, in what experts say raises the risk of sabotage or environmental damage in one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.
Between 30 and 40 shadow fleet tankers are clustered around unofficial anchorage points in Russian waters, as well as the 6-nautical-mile-wide strip of international waters between Finland and Estonia.
“These are vessels that are linked to the Russian state. And now that the Russian state has acknowledged that link, they could be used for adversarial purposes while waiting,” — Elisabeth Braw, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council
The ships are unable to reroute to nearby ports due to the risk of being detained.
