France is required to release the detained tanker classified as part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet, as existing national legislation does not allow the vessel to be held under arrest. This was reported by Volodymyr Zelensky, who noted that Emmanuel Macron had warned him of the decision during a phone call the previous day.
According to Zelensky, the French president simultaneously stated his intention to push for legislative changes so that, in the future, Russian tankers detained by French authorities could remain under arrest. To date, all comparable cases involving the detention of shadow fleet vessels by European countries have ended with their release after a period of time.
This practice is rooted in the norms of international maritime law, which prohibit the seizure of civilian vessels in international waters except in a narrowly defined set of circumstances. In addition, blocking navigation to Russian ports could be interpreted by Moscow as an act of war. As a result, European countries that regularly declare their readiness to curb the activities of the shadow fleet in practice confine themselves to symbolic measures—temporarily detaining vessels before releasing them.