Royal Marines Seize Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker in Channel
14th June 2026
In a six-hour operation in the early hours of Sunday morning, Royal Marine Commandos and law enforcement officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) boarded the Smyrtos, a Russian tanker operating off the south coast of England.
The vessel, which was sailing under the flag of Cameroon, will now be moved to an anchorage off the south coast of England and will be monitored for any environmental or safety concerns, officials said.
The operation, ordered by Sir Keir Starmer, comes after months of warnings that Russian shadow tankers, which are used by Vladimir Putin to trade sanctioned oil across the world, were sailing with impunity through the Channel.
The Telegraph previously revealed that tankers had been escorted through the Channel by Russian warships in open defiance of UK sanctions.