French navy boards Russian shadow fleet-linked tanker in Indian Ocean
The French navy boarded the oil tanker DF Peak more than 450 nautical miles south of Réunion Island in the Indian Ocean on October 12, suspecting it of sailing under a false flag and engaging in illicit fuel transport, President Emmanuel Macron said.
Macron announced the operation on X, saying France was determined to combat the shadow fleet worldwide.
"This operation, conducted in accordance with international maritime law, demonstrates our determination to uphold the law and combat all forms of illicit trafficking, wherever they occur," he said.
According to Ukraine's military intelligence agency's War & Sanctions database, DF Peak (IMO 9341067) is a crude oil tanker linked to the sanctioned Russian shipping company Sovcomflot.
The vessel is listed as subject to sanctions imposed by the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, Canada, Switzerland, Japan and Ukraine.
The database also flags information about the vessel's registration, including its use of the Beninese flag.
Macron did not say whether the vessel had been formally seized or whether its crew had been detained.
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