France seizes oil tanker near Sicily

French naval forces intercepted an oil tanker near Sicily this week, the latest in a series of Western maritime operations targeting vessels accused of helping Russia evade sanctions. President Emmanuel Macron announced the seizure of the tanker Deliver on Thursday, June 25, stating the French Navy boarded the vessel on Tuesday after it was found to be in violation of international maritime law.

The Deliver, a Cameroonian-flagged vessel sailing from the Russian Baltic port of Primorsk, was escorted to an anchorage for inspection. French authorities cited doubts over the validity of its registration as the reason for the boarding. Macron said the operation, which he described as the fifth such French action since September, demonstrates Europe's resolve to disrupt the so-called "shadow fleet" Russia uses to export oil despite Western sanctions imposed after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The move follows a similar operation by British forces earlier this month, when the UK intercepted and boarded the tanker Smyrtos in the English Channel. Macron characterized the coordinated actions as a sign of European determination to enforce sanctions and cut off financial streams...