Germany blocks Russian “shadow fleet” tanker from entering its territorial waters in unprecedented move

Germany has denied the Cameroonian-flagged tanker Tavian entry into its territorial waters, according to reports by Süddeutsche Zeitung, NDR and WDR. This is the first known instance of a vessel linked to Russia’s “shadow fleet” being barred from the area. As The Insider has learned, the tanker was refused entry while it was still in Danish waters and subsequently changed course. What exactly prompted Germany’s tougher maritime policy toward the “shadow fleet” remains unclear.

The tanker in question is a 27-year-old vessel that German media describe as a “zombie tanker”: the ship has repeatedly changed its name and identification details, and German border guards suspected that it was sailing under a false flag and with a forged registration number. The vessel is known to be using a fake IMO number, 1095337. According to German experts, Tavian is in fact the tanker Tia, previously registered under IMO number 9147447. If so, it is one of the oldest large oil tankers still in operation. The tanker Tia is included on the U.S. sanctions list, as well as that of the organization United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI).

The Maritime Security Service stressed that this is the first recorded case of a “zombie tanker” appearing off the coast of Germany. After checking the documents, Germany’s federal police denied Tavian entry into German waters on its approach to the Baltic Sea, and according to Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the vessel turned north. The tanker is now heading toward the Norwegian Sea. From there, it is not far to Murmansk — another Russian oil port.

Germany's odd behavior

Previously, vessels from the “shadow fleet” had not faced obstacles of this kind. In early December 2025, the captain of another “shadow fleet” tanker, Chariot Tide (IMO: 9323376), reported technical problems and dropped anchor off Germany’s North Sea coast, close to a data transmission cable. Likely as a result of last year’s Eagle S incident (in which a “shadow fleet” tanker was suspected of damaging a cable in the Gulf of Finland), German dispatched ships from the Bundeswehr and the navy, and police officers boarded the Chariot Tide to carry out an inspection. After that, the vessel was allowed to continue on its way.

In that case, German authorities proceed from the principle of free passage governed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Under UNCLOS, ships cannot simply be barred from entering the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) into which the Baltic Sea is divided. At the same time, under the same Convention, the absence of registration or suspicion of a false flag constitutes grounds for detaining a vessel. Nevertheless, until today “shadow fleet” had been allowed to move fairly freely through the EEZs of the Baltic Sea’s coastal states.

Almost all of the tanker detentions to date have ultimately ended with the vessels being released. As maritime law experts explained to The Insider, confiscation of tankers is virtually impossible, even if they sail without any documents, registration, permits, or insurance. Under UNCLOS, a vessel cannot be held under arrest in port for an extended period. If it pays the necessary fines and passes all the necessary technical inspections to obtain permission to sail, further detention of the vessel and the holding of crew members are impermissible.

The Insider has sent inquiries to Germany’s Foreign Ministry, Transport Ministry, and the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency.