Finland Reports Russia Has Begun Naval Escorts for Shadow Fleet Tankers
After vowing to take steps to protect its vessels, Russia has reportedly begun escorting shadow fleet tankers in the Gulf of Finland. Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen of Finland called it “unprecedented” during an interview on Finnish TV on Saturday, May 24.
“A new feature is that Russia is protecting tankers from its shadow fleet in the narrow passage of the Gulf of Finland. There is military escort and the presence of armed forces. This is a completely new development,” said Häkkänen on YLE, Finland's national public broadcasting company.
He made the statement after Finland’s Ministry of Defense reported that two Russian military aircraft were suspected of violating Finnish airspace on the afternoon of May 23, 2025. Häkkänen said, "We take the suspected territorial violation seriously and an investigation is underway."
The escalation appears to be in response to the moves by the EU and UK to sanction more tankers and the efforts by Estonia to inspect suspected shadow fleet tankers. On May 13, there was a brief standoff between Estonian forces and a tanker that they suspected was operating without a legitimate registry. The tanker refused to stop for an inspection and a Russian fighter plane entered Estonian airspace possibly to defend the tanker. In April, Estonia detained another suspected “stateless” tanker for several days.
After the incident in May, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia called the actions “Baltic pirates” and accused the EU of being “cheerleaders” in the “flagrant violation of freedom of navigation.” Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary to Vladimir Putin, also said that Russia would use all means to defend its ships.
As an example of the lengths the shadow fleet is going to, the tanker involved in the showdown on May 13, Jaguar (105,000 dwt) registered in Gabon, departed Russia’s oil terminal at Primorsk yesterday, May 25, bearing a new name. AIS signals show the vessel now sailing under the name Blint and registered in Comoros. It would be the third name change for the vessel which began 2025 as Argent, switched to Jaguar, and now to Blint all in a matter of months.
The EU recently enacted rules permitting the inspection of vessels sailing through EU waters even when no port stop was scheduled. After the recent incidents, Estonia’s Defense Ministry has said it would continue its efforts to inspect suspect vessels. It continues to claim the legal authority saying it is acting to protect the region including the environment from these vessels which lack insurance and often are poorly maintained.