Royal Marine Commandos and National Crime Agency officials boarded and detained the Smyrtos, a sanctioned Russian oil tanker sailing under a Cameroonian flag, in the English Channel on Sunday in what the UK Defence Ministry called “the first UK-led operation of its kind.”
The pre-dawn raid was backed by Chinook helicopters, additional aircraft, a frigate, and a minehunter.
Lieutenant Colonel Tom Quinn told reporters the crew offered no resistance. “Once we boarded the vessel and moved to the bridge, the dialogue that we had with them was professional, safe, and indeed the crew enabled us to conduct the actions that we needed to complete to safely take control of that vessel,” he said.
Government-released video showed commandos abseiling onto the deck while NCA officials combed through documentation.
Sunday’s operation marks a significant shift in Britain’s posture toward Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. Previously, the UK had played only a supporting role in French and US-led interceptions.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer had authorized the military to board and detain such vessels back in March, though a subsequent Reuters analysis found the policy change produced no measurable reduction in the number of sanctioned ships transiting UK waters.
The Smyrtos will remain detained and monitored off the south coast of England while investigations continue. The operation was coordinated closely with France.
The UK has sanctioned nearly 600 Russian shadow fleet vessels to date.
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