The French Navy boarded the sanctioned crude oil tanker Tagor in the Atlantic Ocean on May 31, detaining the vessel more than 400 nautical miles west of Brittany after it was found flying a Cameroonian flag from a registry Cameroon had closed in February 2026.
The Tagor left Murmansk under a Madagascan flag and switched to a Cameroonian flag mid-voyage, according to iNews. Cameroon’s maritime register has been closed since February 2026, leaving the vessel with no valid nationality when intercepted and giving France grounds under international maritime law to board it. The Atlantic maritime prefecture confirmed the flag irregularity after inspecting the ship’s documents.
In a post on X, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the operation and shared footage that appeared to show naval commandos rappelling from a helicopter onto the tanker’s deck. Macron called it “unacceptable for ships to circumvent international sanctions” and finance Russia’s war in Ukraine.
La Marine nationale a arraisonné hier matin un nouveau pétrolier sous sanctions internationales en provenance de Russie : le Tagor. Notre détermination est constante et totale.
Cette intervention a été effectuée en Atlantique, en haute mer,… pic.twitter.com/zxEslYjbUE
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) June 1, 2026
The UK Ministry of Defence confirmed a helicopter from HMS Somerset provided tracking and monitoring support to the French-led operation.
Atlantic maritime prefecture spokesperson Guillaume Le Rasle told AFP the Tagor was subject to European Union (EU) and United States sanctions, had changed flags multiple times, and was “almost empty” when boarded. The vessel carried 23 crew members. Russia’s embassy in Paris said preliminary information indicated the captain is a Russian citizen.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov described the seizure as “illegal” and said it was “bordering on international piracy.”
The Tagor is the fourth shadow fleet vessel France has boarded since September 2025. The three previous ships, the Boracay, Grinch, and Deyna, were released after their owners paid fines.
France announced in April a plan to double penalties for vessels that refuse to fly a flag or comply with orders to stop.
