Britain’s first interception of a suspected Russian shadow fleet tanker is a “deeply cynical ploy” to help protect Sir Keir Starmer‘s image, a former commander has suggested. Royal Marines boarded and seized the Smyrtos in a six-hour operation in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The operation in the English Channel came at the end of a tumultuous week for the Prime Minister which saw Defence Secretary John Healey and Armed Forces Minister Al Carns quit over a deepening military spending row. Tom Sharpe, who commanded four warships during a 27-year Royal Navy career, questioned the timing of the interdiction. He told the Express: “We’ve had well over 100 [shadow fleet vessels] pass us since we last said we were going to do something about it in March, and we haven’t.
“There’s just no way that the perfect one happened to pop up just as everything else is descending into farce.
“So, this is a deeply cynical ploy to make defence look robust, to make Starmer look robust.
“But there’s a conflict, because it’s also the right thing to do.”
He added: “Why didn’t we do this a week ago, or two weeks ago, or a month ago?”
Dramatic footage from the operation released by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) showed commandos, under the cover of darkness, fast-roping from a Chinook helicopter onto the Smyrtos.
Specially-trained officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) also boarded the vessel, which was sailing under a Cameroon flag.
Merlin and Wildcat helicopters, an RAF P-8A Poseidon and the Royal Navy’s HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury were also involved.
The MoD has insisted the interdiction was the result of weeks of military and political planning.
Mr Sharpe said this may have been the case, but the operation could’ve also been launched very quickly.
“Thursday, you could’ve got the signal, going ‘right the next one, board it’,” he said.
Sir Keir hailed the seizure as “another blow” to Russia, which “reminds those fueling Putin’s war in Ukraine that they cannot hide”.
Shadow fleet vessels, of which there are believed to be some 700, are typically ageing oil tankers with murky ownership and dubious flagging.
They are used to help fund Moscow’s war on Ukraine by ferrying Russian oil and gas while evading international sanctions.
The vessels are responsible for carrying 75% of Russia’s sanctioned oil, according to the MoD.
Dan Jarvis, who was appointed Defence Secretary on Thursday following Mr Healey’s resignation, said: “Operations like this require skill, professionalism and courage. I pay tribute to our Armed Forces personnel and all those involved.
“Russia relies on its shadow fleet to fund its conflict in Ukraine, and our interdiction delivers a blow to Putin’s illegal war.”
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said: “I pay tribute to the brave Royal Marine Commandos who boarded a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker overnight in the English Channel.
“Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine is funded by its oil exports in defiance of sanctions.
“As Leader of the Opposition, I support the Government in standing with Ukraine.”
The Smyrtos was intercepted in international waters more than 12 nautical miles off England’s south coast.
The MoD said the vessel, sanctioned by the UK in October last year, will be provisionally moved to an anchorage and monitored for any environmental or safety concerns.
It is currently off the coast of Weymouth, Dorset, according to the MarineTraffic website.
The helicopters involved in the interception took off from South-west England at around midnight on Sunday, the Express understands.
Mr Sharpe said the operation was a “job well done” but “not the hardest thing to do”.
He added there were a number of moving parts and that if it had gone wrong, it would have gone “very wrong, very quickly”.
The retired senior officer said he expects the incident will lead to more shadow fleet vessels sailing around the Republic of Ireland rather than going through the Channel, adding significant time onto their journeys, or being escorted by Russian warships.
There could also be a rise in the number of tankers flying a Russian flag to stop further seizures from happening, Mr Sharpe added.
The British military previously supported US and French operations to seize sanctioned tankers.
The operation to seize the Smyrtos was carried out in close coordination with the French, the MoD said.