Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Thursday he had authorised the military to board and detain Russian ships in British waters to disrupt a network of vessels that his government says enables
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Thursday he had authorised the military to board and detain Russian ships in British waters to disrupt a network of vessels that his government says enables Moscow to export oil despite Western sanctions.
The decision comes as other European nations, including France, Belgium and Sweden, have stepped up efforts to detain Russia's so-called shadow fleet of tankers used by Moscow to fund its four-year war against Ukraine.
Starmer said he approved the more aggressive action against the vessels because Russian President Vladimir Putin was likely "rubbing his hands" over the sharp rise in oil prices driven by the U.S.-Israel war against Iran.
"That is why, in my strong view, we should go after the shadow fleet even harder," Starmer said at a meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force Summit in Helsinki on Thursday. "Together we must close off critical sea routes to this vital trade to keep up the pressure on Putin."
Britain provided intelligence and logistics support this year to the French and U.S. military, who detained Russian vessels. But Starmer's announcement is the first time that British forces have been authorised to board Russian ships.
MOVE COULD FORCE RUSSIAN SHIPS
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