UK defence secretary pledges to seize Russia’s “shadow fleet” vessels

British Defence Secretary John Healey has vowed to take maximum action to restrict the financial resources fueling Russia’s military operations.

Speaking on Sky News, Healey said that the UK and its allies have already halted 200 of nearly 600 Russian vessels. He added: “We've also determined to double down on the action that could help further turn the screw on Putin and his flow of funds that support his illegal war in Ukraine.”

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is scheduled to discuss military and legal measures with allies at a meeting of the United Expeditionary Forces in Finland on March 26.

In response to US moves to partially lift sanctions on Russian oil amid rising prices linked to the Iran conflict, Healey noted: “We've seen the combined action that we, with other allies, have taken on the shadow shipping that's helped reduce Russia's oil revenues by a quarter. We can do more.”

He emphasized that the UK has both legal and military capabilities to act against sanctioned Russian vessels: “And the prime minister's confirmation today that we're ready to do more, that we have the legal and military options in place, and that we've had the discussions with allies like the JEF nations he's with this afternoon is a signal to Putin that he can't run his illegal, sanctioned ships through British UK waters in future without the risk of us seizing them.”