Sanctions on Russian ships are disputed by international law; drone attacks target both Russian and non-Russian vessels.
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Maria Zaharova asserts that sanctions targeting Russian ships violate international law and do not permit ship seizures. The US military intercepted a Marinera tanker heading to Murmansk on January 7th, prompting Russia to send naval assets which did not intervene. On January 22nd, the French military seized the Grinch oil tanker in the Mediterranean; although not flying a Russian flag, it was on an EU sanctions list targeting the Russian shadow fleet, which is estimated to include around 1400 tankers operating under various flags. Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard announced on January 29th that Sweden and Finland are proposing the EU create a comprehensive sanctions list covering all vessels in the Russian shadow fleet. Drone attacks have become regular in the Black Sea, targeting ships of the Russian shadow fleet near Turkish, Bulgarian, and Romanian coasts, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warning of escalation. Greek ships have also been affected on this route; the Greek Foreign Ministry warned after four Greek oil tankers were hit by drones earlier in the year. Kyiv denied that Ukrainian armed forces were responsible for these actions, while Athens urged vessels sailing under Greek flags to assess risks carefully and ensure adequate crew protection, especially when heading to Russian ports like Novorossiysk or those on the Crimean Peninsula and Caucasus Black Sea coasts.
