Ukraine intel exposing captains from Russia’s shadow fleet
That’s according to a report by the Foreign Intelligence Service, seen by Ukrinform.
As the shadow fleet operation “directly meets the kremlin’s financial needs to wage war against Ukraine”, anyone deliberately taking part in its operation is an accomplice in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the report stressed.
To help Russia circumvent sanctions, captains turn off automatic identification systems (AIS) on their vessels, engage in oil transshipment to other vessels (STS) jeopardizing environmental safety, and operate tankers with improper insurance, the report stresses.
These actions are in breach of the IMO Resolution A.1192 (33), intelligence analysts emphasize.
One of the exposed captains is Dmitriy Bondyuk, a Russian national in charge of the BODHI tanker (IMO 9144782), which is under the UK and EU sanctions.
On January 11, 2025, the vessel under his command departed from the port of Tuapse (the Black Sea) carrying 65,100 tonnes of Russian petroleum products en route to Singapore. At the moment, the tanker is heading through the South China Sea towards its destination – the port of Yantai (China).
In the report, the Foreign Intelligence Service noted the captain’s personal data, including his date and place of birth, passport number, mobile phone, email and physical addresses.
The agency pledges to contribute to increasing sanctions pressure on Russia’s shadow fleet and its captains, including the one exposed in the latest report, as it keeps monitoring over 300 such individuals, further expanding the scope of such work.
