Russia condemns EU plan for warships to stop ‘shadow fleet’ vessels in Mediterranean

MOSCOW: Russia ‌on Wednesday condemned an EU decision to authorize EU military vessels in the Mediterranean ​to stop and inspect foreign ships suspected of being part of a “shadow fleet” transporting Russian oil, and said it would take all necessary legal and other measures to protect them.
The EU said ‌on Monday ‌it had expanded ​the ‌mandate ⁠of Operation ​IRINI, its ⁠naval mission in the Mediterranean that was originally set up to enforce a UN arms embargo on Libya.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said this posed ⁠a threat to maritime security ‌and accused ‌the EU of intimidating civilian ​vessels.
She said ‌there was no such thing ‌in international law as a “shadow fleet,” and this term was a “political fabrication” by the EU.
“The European Union’s deployment ‌of ships from the IRINI naval operation deployed in the Mediterranean ⁠to ⁠inspect or seize, as they now say, vessels carrying oil products would constitute a flagrant violation of international law,” Zakharova told a press briefing.
“We reserve the right to use the full arsenal of political, legal, and other instruments at our disposal to protect ​maritime security and ​the legitimate interests of shippers and shipowners.”