Report: Russia’s “Shadow Fleet” Increases False Flags to Evade Sanctions

The “shadow fleet” tankers used to transport Russian oil and energy products are increasingly circumventing sanctions by using false flags, finds a new report by Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). They contend that false flags have become the latest trick employed to ensure the transport of crude oil worth billions of dollars to international markets, including China and India.

While the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. have been deliberate in attempts to stop the flow of Russia’s crude through sanctions, most of which target specific tankers, the research highlights that a total of 113 “shadow” vessels have sailed under a false flag during the past nine months. The report finds that the vessels reporting a false flag transported 11 million tonnes of oil valued at €4.7 billion ($5.4 billion) during the period, accounting for 11 percent of crude transported by the “shadow” fleet.

The Helsinki-based think tank asserts that the practice not only poses significant security and environmental risks but also undermines global maritime rules and exploits gaps in flag-state governance.

The report shows that the rate of Russia’s dark fleet use of false flags was at its peak in September. During the month, a total of 90 vessels operated under false flags, a six-fold increase compared to 15 vessels in December last year. Notably, 52 of these vessels have traded at least once in the third quarter of this year. In September alone, 18 shadow vessels employing false flags transported €830 million ($961.8 million) of Russian oil globally.

Based on its analysis of data from the Equasis database and cross-referenced with the IMO Global Integrated Shipping System records, they report that sanctioned vessels in the first three quarters of this year carried 44 percent of Russia’s crude exports. Unsanctioned “shadow vessels” accounted for 26 percent, with the remaining 30 percent transported by G7+ owned/insured vessels. The fact that sanctioned vessels hold the biggest share, the authors conclude, is an indication that the Kremlin is desperately relying on the shadow fleet to get its crude to international markets.

According to the report, a reluctance among traditional open registries to offer services to the shadow fleet has prompted the proliferation of many new registries with little to no history in maritime transport. In effect, false flagging has become common among sanctioned vessels, with 96 vessels under sanctions having flown a false flag at least once till the end of September.

The sanctions have also contributed to a dramatic increase in “flag hopping.” The analysis showed that a total of 134 vessels sanctioned by the EU, U.S., or UK as of the end of September have shifted their flag registry at least once within three months of being added to the sanctions list. A total of 85 vessels they found have reported at least two flag changes six months after having been sanctioned.

Critically, the false flags of 20 countries have been used by the “shadow” fleet. They include countries that either do not offer flagging services or have actively denied flagging “shadow” vessels and have deregistered them post-sanctions. The most frequently used false flag is that of Malawi, with other false flags including Benin, Guyana, Comoros, Guinea, and Gambia, among others. Even though there are 11 ships currently in the Equasis database claiming Malawi as their flag, investigations confirm that Malawi does not have a registry. 

Since the first case occurred in June of a vessel claiming to be registered in Malawi, the report finds that 24 sanctioned vessels have reported Malawi’s flag while carrying Russian oil. Malawi’s Secretary for Transport and Public Works wrote to the IMO in July 2025, asking for “appropriate action to be taken against the fraudsters.” The Caribbean nation of Saint Maarten warned of a similar fraud in July 2025, and the South American country of Guyana highlighted a similar fraud after the U.S. sanctioned five tankers claiming Guyana as their flag state. (Equasis currently shows 73 vessels with a false Guyana flag and 15 with a false Saint Maarten flag.)

While international law requires that every vessel sailing in open seas is required to fly a flag that provides it with legal jurisdiction for its operations in international waters, a growing number of Russia’s fleet has gone “rogue” since the Ukraine invasion.

CREA is highlighting that of the 46 registries that have flagged “shadow” vessels transporting Russian oil since the invasion in 2022, 23 are classified as “flags of convenience” by the International Transport Workers Federation. Notably, vessels flagged by the 23 registries have enabled Russia to transport crude oil and oil products worth €50 billion ($58 billion), accounting for nearly one-fifth of all “shadow” fleet cargo. Six flag registries that had not flagged a Russian oil vessel before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine had at least 10 such vessels in their fleet in September 2025. These six registries currently flag a total of 162 “shadow” vessels.

“CREA’s new data-rich report evidences not only persistent deficiencies in sanctions enforcement but also the deeper structural weaknesses in international maritime governance that enable shadow fleet operations,” said Gonzalo Saiz Erausquin, Research Fellow, Centre for Finance and Security at the Royal United Services Institute.

Considering that sanctions have failed to stop the flow of Russia’s crude, CREA recommends that the EU increase the crackdown on the shadow fleet, including expanding the detention of vessels reporting false flags and imposing strict fines on their operators and insurers. They also recommend a unified EU database of legitimate flag registries shared between port authorities and working with both the flag states and open registries to “tighten the net” on the shadow fleet.