A third Russian oil tanker has reported a distress signal in the Black Sea, Russian operational services reported, quoted by TASS and Reuters. Over the weekend, two other tankers were damaged in a storm and leaked oil, BTA reported.
The spilled oil has "floated" dozens of kilometers off the Russian Black Sea coast, a local governor said, and a regional task force declared an emergency in several places. Although TASS did not report details about the third tanker in distress, the "Baza" channel on the "Telegram" social application said that it belongs to the same series as the previous two.
Against this backdrop, Britain today imposed sanctions on 20 ships it claims are evading sanctions on Russian oil, Reuters reported. The agency notes that these are the latest measures by London against Russia's "shadow fleet."
“While oil profits for Russian President Vladimir Putin continue to fuel the fires of war, Ukrainian families endure cold and dark nights, often without heating, light and electricity, and are subjected to relentless Russian missile attacks,“ said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.“These sanctions will add further pressure on Putin's slowing military economy,“ he added. The sanctioned ships are “Ocean Faye“, “Andaman Skies“ and “Mianzimu“, each of which has transported more than four million barrels of Russian oil this year, the British government said.
The measures restrict or ban their movement and access to some British ports. On Monday, Britain and 11 other Western countries agreed measures to “disrupt and deter” Russia's “shadow fleet”. Starmer also announced 35 million pounds in emergency aid to repair Ukraine's energy grid, damaged by Russian attacks.