In the dark early hours of Sunday, armed Royal Marine commandos fast-roped from a helicopter onto a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker in the English Channel – the first UK-led operation of its kind. The six-hour boarding, joined by National Crime Agency officers and supported by RAF aircraft and Royal Navy vessels, targeted the Smyrtos, a sanctioned vessel sailing under a Cameroonian flag that the Ministry of Defence said was one of more than 700 ships carrying 75% of Russia's sanctioned oil.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he had directed the armed forces to intercept the tanker as it tried to pass through the Channel. "This successful operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling Putin's war in Ukraine that we will not let them hide," he said, thanking the forces and law enforcement officers who keep the country safe "24 hours a day, 365 days a year."
“UK Royal Marines and NCA board Russian shadow fleet oil tanker in first UK-led operation, PM Starmer says.”
Dan Jarvis, who became defence secretary on Thursday after John Healey resigned over defence spending, said: "Russia relies on its shadow fleet to fund their conflict in Ukraine and our interdiction delivers a blow to Putin's illegal war." He added that the operation required "skill, professionalism and courage".
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, thanked the UK, calling the interception an "important step". "It was Russia's hubris, fuelled by high oil and gas revenues, that paved the way for this war," he wrote, urging Europe to enable detention of tankers and confiscation of the oil they carry.
Footage released by the MoD showed personnel fast-roping onto the vessel, then searching cabins while NCA officers inspected paperwork. The Smyrtos – which began its journey on 5 June from Russia's Ust-Luga port and was sanctioned in July 2025 – has already changed its name from Myrtos and its flag twice. It will now be anchored off the south coast of England, near Weymouth, and monitored for environmental or safety concerns.
The operation, which took place in international waters more than 12 nautical miles from the UK coast, was supported by aircraft from the Maritime Air Group (Chinooks, Merlin Mk4 and Wildcat), an RAF P-8 aircraft, and the navy vessels HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury. The MoD said it was in full compliance with both domestic and international law, and involved weeks of planning and close coordination with France.
There was no immediate response from Moscow, which has previously described such interceptions as illegal and "bordering on international piracy". The UK has now sanctioned more than 500 vessels from the shadow fleet that provides a critical lifeline for the Kremlin, the MoD said.