In December 2024, several countries bordering the North Sea and Baltic Sea, including Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Finland, the UK, Poland and Sweden, agreed in principle to inspect ships that are categorised as part of Russia's so-called shadow fleet and intend to sail through the English Channel, the Great Belt, the Öresund between Denmark and Sweden and the Gulf of Finland.
Unlike the other nations, the Federal Republic of Germany had not promised to take any concrete steps. This has now changed, as since 1 July 2025, German authorities have also been questioning suspect ships sailing eastwards off Fehmarn about their insurance cover against oil pollution damage, as announced by the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV).
Fehmarn-Belt/Baltic Sea shipping route. Image: GoogleMaps/Map-Data-2025
This measure is also part of the global efforts to reduce the 'Russian shadow fleet' in order to improve both traffic safety and environmental protection at sea. This is because some of the ships belonging to the shadow fleet are very old, poorly maintained and use unsafe shipping practices such as switching off or manipulating the automatic identification system (AIS) in order to circumvent the sanctions imposed by the EU, the UK and the USA. marineforum.online reported extensively on the criteria for a shadow fleet in February 2025.
The information and documents obtained from the traffic centres are checked by the Ship Safety Division, which performs government tasks on behalf of the BMV. Anomalies from the feedback can lead to Europe-wide observation, measures by the flag state and, if further criteria are met, to the ship being sanctioned.
Foreign Minister Dr Johann Wadephul believes that the new queries will help to further intensify coordination with friends and partners in the region. And the goal is very clear: "We are increasing the pressure on the Russian shadow fleet and protecting the Baltic Sea habitat," said the Minister.
As always, it remains to be seen what impact the queries will actually have on the shadow fleet. Questions also remain unanswered about the possible consequences if a ship refuses to co-operate with such a query and/or valuable tanker cargoes are accompanied by Russian warships.
kdk, BMV
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