The French navy have stormed a Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker and have arrested the captain and the first officer off the French coast over fears the vessel was behind the recent drone incursions in Denmark.
French prosecutor Stephane Kellenberger, in the western city of Brest said on Thursday they stand accused of failing to provide evidence over the vessel’s nationality and for disobeying orders.
At the time of the drone incursions in Demark it is believed the ship carrying Russian oil was in the area at the time which saw some Danish airports to close for safety reasons.
It is believed by Western officials that Vladimir Putin is using the shadow fleet to circumvent sanctions imposed by the West.
French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu wrote on X, “Thanks to our navy commandos and to the crews of the French navy who intervened this weekend on board a Russian shadow fleet tanker, currently anchored off Saint-Nazaire.
“Their action contributed to the arrest of two members of its crew.”
The prosecutor’s office in Brest said a probe has been launched over the crew’s “refusal to cooperate” and failing to “justify the nationality of the vessel.”
The French President Emmanuel Macron said the tanker was stopped amid an “intervention” by the French navy several days ago.
Speaking at the summit of EU leaders in Copenhagen Macron said, “I think it’s a good thing that this work has been done and that we’ve been able to stop it.”
“There were some very serious wrongdoings made by this crew, which is why there are legal proceedings in the case,” he added.
