Russia's shadow fleet transports oil using fake insurance policies – Bloomberg

Russian tankers in the "shadow fleet" use insurance certificates from non-existent companies to circumvent international sanctions and transport oil. 

According to Bloomberg, the sanctioned vessel Paz received documents from the fictitious German firm Seaguard P&I, which does not actually exist.

In addition to the Paz, similar fake certificates have been found on at least four other vessels, allowing them to formally comply with maritime regulations while transporting Russian energy resources. In particular, in March 2026, French authorities detained the tanker Deyna on suspicion of circumventing restrictions and using questionable documents. European countries are tightening controls in their territorial waters, as such vessels pose a significant threat to maritime safety and the region’s environment.

Violations of international norms, the use of false flags, and invalid insurance have become the aggressor’s primary tools following the blocking of access to Western insurance services. Unlike Russia, which creates global risks for the world’s oceans to finance the war, Ukraine and the international community are working to increase sanctions pressure and expose the aggressor’s logistics chains. Further detection of such schemes is critically important for the complete isolation of the Russian energy sector from global markets.

As a reminder, France plans to significantly increase penalties for ship owners and operators who use false flags or ignore orders to stop.

Europe plans to discuss operational decisions regarding the introduction of the 20th package of sanctions against Russia to increase pressure on Moscow.