The High Seas Hypocrisy: When 'Rules-Based Order' Meets the Barrel of a Tanker
Let's follow the trail: THE ACTORS: Who is involved in this story? On one side, we have the United Kingdom's Ministry of Defence (MoD) , presumably acting under directives from the broader government, and NATO allies. Their mandate is to 'uphold international stability.' On the other, the amorphous 'Russia-linked shadow fleet' – a collection of vessels allegedly sidestepping sanctions to transport
Russian oil. The focus is specifically on tankers reportedly bypassing the G7-imposed price cap of $60 a barrel, primarily by using Western insurance and shipping services. One might wonder who benefits from the enforcement of this particular cap... THE FUNDING: Where does their money come from? The UK MoD is funded by the British taxpayer, with a defense budget of approximately £55.6 billion for
2023-24 (House of Commons Library, 2024). The 'shadow fleet,' by its very definition, aims to operate outside of traditional financial transparency. However, the oil itself generates significant revenue for Russia, estimated at over $30 billion in a single year from fossil fuels (Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, 2023), much of which is then used to fund its ongoing conflict. Curiously,
despite the 'sanctions,' much of this oil still finds its way to market, often through intermediaries or by being refined in countries not participating in the Western sanctions apparatus, such as India or China, before being resold globally. THE INCENTIVES: What do they gain from this narrative? For the UK and its allies, seizing a tanker provides a powerful visual deterrent, reinforcing the