French armed forces board Russian shadow fleet tanker suspected of launching drones - sources

[muriel_volestrangler]

French military personnel were reportedly on the deck of the suspected “shadow fleet” tanker we reported on a bit earlier (17:17), which is stationed off France and suspected of involvement in drone flights over Denmark last month, AFP reported.

A source within the executive branch, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP earlier that the French navy had boarded the Boracay, a Benin-flagged vessel blacklisted by the European Union for being part of Russia’s sanction-busting “shadow fleet” of ageing oil tankers.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/oct/01/mette-frederiksen-denmark-europe-russia-vladimir-putin-volodymyr-zelenskyy-ukraine-hybrid-war-security-europe-live-news?CMP=share_btn_url&page=with%3Ablock-68dd5b7e8f08694a84a034f7#block-68dd5b7e8f08694a84a034f7

France investigates Russia-linked oil tanker suspected of launching drones

French authorities are investigating an oil tanker that is subject to sanctions and suspected of being part of Russia’s shadow fleet, which may have been a launchpad for mystery drone flights that forced the closure of airports in Denmark last week.

The tanker, known as the Boracay, has used numerous identities and was one of four Russia-linked vessels in the seas near Denmark at the time of the drone sightings on 22 and 24 September, which so far have not been fully explained.

It was sailing from the Russian oil terminal in Primorsk near St Petersburg, carrying 750,000 barrels of crude oil, to Vadinar in India, but was intercepted by a French naval vessel on Sunday and diverted towards Saint-Nazaire in western France while inquiries continue.
...
Boracay, a Benin-flagged tanker, had just changed its name from Pushpa. Under that name, it was monitored sailing west around Denmark last week, and was cited by naval experts as one of a handful of Russia-linked vessels that may have been involved in the drone incidents.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/oct/01/france-oil-tanker-russia-drone-denmark

[dutch777]

1. Sanctions need to be increased to allow seizing Ru oil and anything that transports it. The owners of these ships...

...will take them out of service to Russia very quickly after a few more seizures in international waters. Of course Ukraine is doing a pretty good job of crippling Ru refining and pipeline capacity with its deep strikes so that is also good. If we and others give Ukraine more and longer range deep strike missiles they can finally bring the Ru economy to its knees as oil is the only major asset that cash flows. You can only get so far on diamonds and caviar.

[Ilsa]

2. Will Putin retaliate against France? If so, NATO

may be called upon by France to invoke Article 5, even it is a drone skirmish.