[Regnum] The guided-missile frigate Admiral Grigorovich escorted two Russian oil tankers through the English Channel. This was reported on April 9 by the British publication The Telegraph.
According to the report, on April 8, the warship escorted the tankers Universal and Enigma, which were heading west toward the port city of Plymouth. Both of these vessels are on the UK sanctions list.
The United Kingdom sent a naval ship to them, but it did not take any action despite all the threats from London.
In late March, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer authorized the UK military and law enforcement to detain Russian vessels under sanctions. He stated that British military personnel have the right to board "shadow fleet" vessels transiting UK territorial waters. However, if detained, the vessel's owners, operators, and crew may face criminal charges for violating UK sanctions laws.
The Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, stated that an absolutely unacceptable situation has recently developed in the world's oceans, in which European states such as France, Sweden, and Finland are stopping and escorting unwanted vessels to their ports with impunity, accusing them of violating certain "international" sanctions.
On March 25, Nikolai Patrushev, aide to the Russian President and Chairman of the Maritime Collegium, also stated that by "hunting" Russia's so-called shadow fleet, Western countries are attempting to tighten their contro , even blocking, over vessels carrying Russian cargo. He added that Western countries continue to provoke ships carrying cargo for Russia, further escalating the situation.