Ukraine's intel uncovers 60+ Russian, Iranian, Venezuelan shadow fleet vessels

In the Marine vessels section of the War&Sanctions portal, HUR revealed data on ships belonging to the shadow fleets of Russia, Iran, and Venezuela, as well as ships involved in the theft of Ukrainian grain and the violation of Ukraine's state border.

HUR has uncovered the activities of tankers belonging to the Cymare Shipmanagement Ltd (Cyprus) and Cymare Navigation FZC (UAE) group of companies.

Since 2023, the tanker fleet of the Cymare Shipmanagement Ltd (Cyprus) and Cymare Navigation FZC (UAE) group of companies has been unhindered in supplying Russia with petrodollars to continue the war against Ukraine, under the cover of companies registered in European Union member states.

The top manager of this group, Nikolay Spichenok, a British citizen, has long worked and continues to work in senior positions in the largest state-owned shipping company in Russia, PJSC Sovcomflot, as well as in related structures.

Sovcomflot, which is under sanctions from most countries in the sanctions coalition, transports Russian oil, petroleum products, and liquefied gas, cooperating with leading Russian oil and gas companies and traders.

Currently, Sovcomflot tankers, in particular those involved in the transportation of oil and petroleum products to and from Venezuela, are massively changing their flags to Russian ones, effectively confirming their involvement in serving the military and economic interests of the aggressor state.

Previously, such ships of the shadow fleet sailed under the flags of third countries to avoid sanctions by Western countries.

This trend is directly in line with the provisions of Russia's Maritime Doctrine, which provides for:

• The expansion of the civilian fleet flying the Russian flag and its use to ensure national interests in the world's oceans
• Strengthening mobilization readiness in the maritime sphere
• The integration of pre-prepared civilian vessels and crews into the Russian Armed Forces in wartime.

HUR callS on the captains and crews of shadow fleet vessels to avoid cooperation with shadow vessel operators.

"Unscrupulous operators of the ‘shadow fleet’ are the first to disappear as soon as a ship comes under the attention of law enforcement agencies, leaving sailors alone to face the legal, financial, and humanitarian consequences of the crime," HUR emphasizes.

War&Sanctions portal

Earlier, HUR revealed information about over a hundred ships and captains involved in the transportation of sanctioned Russian and Iranian oil, as well as stolen Ukrainian grain.

HUR launched the War&Sanctions platform on June 1, 2024. Over the course of a year, the portal has grown from two to nine sections, some of which already have several different data sets.

Today, the portal contains tens of thousands of entities and objects that shape, fuel, enable, embody, and support Russia's war against Ukraine.