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THE MINISTER FOR Defence has said Ireland is considering boarding and inspecting Russian oil smuggling ships, known as the Shadow Fleet, as they pass through the seas off Ireland.
Helen McEntee, who is also Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, was speaking to The Journal in Germany today as she attends meetings at the Munich Security Conference.
McEntee was speaking also ahead of the release of the much anticipated Maritime Security Strategy, which is understood will be published at the end of the month.
At the conference prime ministers and presidents, such as Emmanuel Macron of France and Alexander Stubb of Finland, have said there needs to be a confrontation with the ships. Britain has also said it is considering seizing the vessels.
The Shadow Fleet is a group of approximately 500 named vessels used by Russia to smuggle oil and gas in breach of sanctions.
Security sources, both in Ireland and abroad, have said that states could use environmental protection provisions contained in the United Nations Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in order to board such vessels but that has not materialised.
The ships are listed in sanctions imposed on the Russian regime since the start of the Ukraine invasion of Ukraine. France and Italy have boarded and seized oil tankers. The US has also seized vessels in the wake of its attack on Venezuela.
In his speech to the conference on Friday, Macron was robust in how France is dealing with the issue.
“We should keep going after the Russian war economy. We are preparing a 20-sanction package in the EU, focusing on the energy and financial services sectors.
“And we should continue to hit harder the Russian Shadow Fleet. Russian oil revenue is down 25%, and 75% of sanctioned ships do not return to Russia. We should definitely step up and generalise this effort against the Russian shadow fleet, because it’s efficient, and it’s painful for the war economy in Russia,” he said.
Stubb said Europe’s approach to dealing with the Russian war needs to “hit harder”.
McEntee shares that view but there are complications with security sources telling The Journal that Ireland does not have the capacity to store such giant ships in its ports.
Irish Special Forces the Army Ranger Wing, Naval Service and Air Corps have proven they can carry out such a mission having done so with the MV Matthew seizure.
The Minister said that there are a number of options being considered. She said that she does not believe seizure of the ships is likely but added that boarding and inspecting them is a real consideration for the Government.
“I suppose the question is, and the French came a cropper with the same issue when they boarded, what do you do with it, and where do you bring it?
“That then itself becomes a possible security risk be it from an environmental perspective or otherwise.
“But I mean even boarding ships, questioning people, asking who you are, where you’re going, that, in itself, can be a deterrent. So we’re looking to see how we can partake in that type of engagement as well,” she said.
McEntee said that other countries, particularly in Nordic countries, have carried out such missions and she believe they have acted as a way to push the ships away from transiting through their waters.
“I think we need to explore within our capabilities, what we can and can’t do, and then, if we can go further, we have to be ambitious here,” she added.
McEntee said that Ireland is continuing to monitor the vessels, particularly using the Irish Air Corps to fly out to view them as they pass up the west and east coast. She said that Ireland is also liaising with other countries in regard to the Shadow Fleet and that is expected to grow.
The Minister said that the upcoming Maritime Security Strategy will look at a raft of measures to deal with the dynamic security situation off the Irish coast, and inside the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) that stretches some 260 nautical miles into the Atlantic.
She said they will consider new laws around this and also put partnerships with private sector companies on a more permanent footing.
The document, McEntee said, will focus on key areas particularly in enhancing how Ireland can see out into the EEZ with radar and other technology. There will also be link ups with neighbouring countries such as Britain but also to Nordic and Baltic states.
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