From the Baltic Sea alongside NATO fleets under seven flags to the Mediterranean Sea

Over 2,000 ships from the shadow fleet sail in waters controlled by NATO and European Union member states. LNG tankers and those carrying crude oil and products made from Russian oil enter ports in countries that have reportedly imposed sanctions on trade with Russia. Sanctioned ships continue to sail the seas and oceans. Was there any point in imposing sanctions on those carrying crude oil and products?

Sanctioned ships can sail safely through the Baltic, Black, and Mediterranean Seas, and can safely navigate the Suez Canal and Red Sea. The Indian and Pacific Oceans pose no barriers to them. Even the Northern Sea Route, recently announced as a promising route connecting Baltic ports with Asian ports, is also used to transport oil and gas from Russian terminals.

The now-famous tanker Boracay (IMO 9332810) and its captain have become media heroes. The ship’s spectacular arrest turned out to be a coup. Until recently, the tanker was anchored off the coast of France, fully loaded, flying a false flag, used to transport oil from Russia, and loaded in Primorsk. Two days later, the vessel was identified south of Crete. It disappeared for a day, only to reappear near the entrance to the Suez Canal.

 

A tanker’s route from the Danish Straits to French waters. Source: Windword AI.

A tanker known and unknown

This single tanker, in its short time on board, had five names and sailed under seven flags. The world first learned of it when it was widely reportedly stopped in Estonia in April. Port State Control inspectors identified over 40 deficiencies on the Boracay, then known as the Kiwala. It ended with a slap on the wrist.

The tanker made headlines after the Danish government identified it as one of three ships that may have been the airport from which drones intruded into Danish territory and briefly blocked Copenhagen Airport. At the time the drones were identified in the airport area around 6:30 p.m. on September 22, Windward observers determined that the Boracay was sailing 70 nautical miles away, according to Michelle Wiese Bockmann, a maritime intelligence analyst and specialist in the field of “shadow fleets,” unfair shipping practices, and violations of international shipping law.

Position of the tanker Boracay on October 14, 2025. Source: Vessel Finder.

Windward has identified that since operating in the shadow fleet, the vessel has been involved in at least 25 suspicious operations. Among other things, the Boracay was used to transfer Russian oil in ship-to-ship operations and cooperated with other tankers subject to sanctions. Oil market analysts claim the vessel made numerous calls at ports in Russia. For almost three years, the vessel has been used exclusively for exporting crude oil from Russian fuel terminals.

Ten hours earlier, the Boracay announced that it had changed its name (from Pushpa) and that the captain had abandoned the flag of the false Malawi registry and replaced it with another false Benin registry. This means that the vessel, which loaded 750,000 barrels (159 liters) of Urals crude oil in Russia, had abused its right to free passage throughout the Baltic Sea and the Danish Straits. It sailed around northwestern Europe and through the English Channel into French waters. Bockmann notes that it is effectively a “flagless, illegal [sea-going – MG] and stateless vessel, without insurance and with invalid certificates, if any.”

The Aframax Boracay has a long operational history, but a much shorter and more extensive one as a shadow fleet vessel. It was built in 2007. After years of legal operation, it was introduced to the Russian trade market after being acquired by a new operator in November 2022. It was acquired by the Gatik Ship Management group, which operates vessels that circumvent sanctions. Gatik Ship Management is an operator based in Mumbai, India. The company was founded in March 2022. After the imposition of sanctions, it became the world’s largest operator of a “shadow fleet” used to transport Russian oil.

Ships belonging to shadow fleets in the Baltic Sea. Source: Windword AI

India’s Footprint in the Baltic Sea

Gatik Ship Management describes its services as strategic management and operations in the ship management industry. Its activities are primarily associated with facilitating the export of Russian oil and have been subject to sanctions from the United States, the European Union, and other countries. In response to international scrutiny, Gatik rapidly reduced its fleet, and the ships were transferred to other companies, such as the Turkish company Unic Tanker Ship Management.

The ships are still actively used. Until recently, the company managed a fleet of approximately 60 old tankers for transporting crude oil and petroleum products. The assets were valued at over $1.5 billion, according to analysts from the Ukrainian-based think tank War-Sanctions.

Because the tankers were used to support the Russian “shadow fleet” and transport sanctioned oil and other products, Lloyd’s Register revoked the certificates of 21 Gatik Ship Management vessels. American Club, an insurance company, announced that it was no longer providing insurance coverage for Gatik Ship Management vessels.

Gatik Ship Management quickly transferred its vessels to a network of affiliated companies (including the aforementioned Turkish operator). The vessels were “reflagged” and are managed by companies that “make a living” from transporting Russian oil.

The example of one vessel illustrates the ineffectiveness of sanctions. The UK imposed sanctions on Boracay in October 2024, and the EU in February 2025. As early as 2023, Windward experts were claiming it was a high-risk vessel. Data from Windward and Equasis indicate that since the vessel entered the shadow fleet, Pushpa/Boracay has had nine managers, four registered owners, and three commercial operators, including special purpose vehicles registered in the Seychelles, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, India, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Turkey, according to Bockmann.

Tanker Lynx in Ice. Source: Vessel Finder

Shadow Ship in Ice

This is not the only shadow ship of many navigating the Baltic Sea. Another ship in the shadow fleet, the Lynx (IMO 9412347), made headlines after becoming stuck in Arctic sea ice. These tankers have also been spotted negotiating the Northern Sea Route. This is particularly dangerous for ships without ice classification. This is a serious warning about the growing risks associated with the passage of aged tankers through Arctic ice.

The Barents Observer reported in early October that the Lynx, a Suezmax vessel flying the flag of Oman, was one of at least four tankers and one LNG carrier that entered Arctic waters this summer without ice classification. The Lynx, which is subject to sanctions from the EU, the UK, and the US, had one million barrels of oil loaded in Murmansk in early September.

After transiting the sea, the ship became stuck in ice in the East Siberian Sea, reported Atle Staalesen of the Barents Observer. In mid-September, the Lynx passed through the Bering Strait and entered the Bering Sea. This shadow fleet tanker has changed its name, ownership, and flag state numerous times in recent years. Its previous name was “Leo.”

The situation we face today “is essentially a natural progression caused by corruption and the destruction of the rules and regulations by which we have lived and traded for the past eight decades,” Mark Mirosevic-Sorgo, director of Quincannon, commented on social media. “Create enough gray and everything will be gray; confuse enough people and no prosecution will be possible.” His take is, “Chaos, which is the ultimate goal of those who want to destroy the current world order – Cui Bono?”

Nowadays, one can expect anything from shadow fleet operators and ships, not just the illegal transport of oil or products. These could include the violation of undersea cables, the deployment of reconnaissance drones, or air traffic violations. We can certainly expect new exotic names and flags. We can also expect identification systems to be disabled. And worst of all, sooner or later we face an ecological disaster caused by a false flag ship with no insurance.