We consider such actions illegal, because they are equivalent to international piracy" - Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declared on June 1.
On June 2, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova emphasized that international maritime law allows warships to stop and in very limited cases, civilian ships can be inspected in international waters. However, international treaties do not allow coercion to change the direction of ships and escort ships from international waters to the port of the warship owner.
Ms. Zakharova also rejected French President Emmanuel Macron's argument about the implementation of international sanctions. Only sanctions adopted by the United Nations Security Council are international. Unilateral restrictive measures imposed by Europe are not considered international.
A spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry also warned that many ships operating to serve the interests of European countries today use the form of "convenient flags" - that is, registering in other countries to benefit from taxes or legal regulations. If France expands its pursuit of such ships in international waters, it could create serious consequences for the global maritime transport industry.
On May 31, French military forces with British support blocked the Tagor ship in international waters, more than 400 nautical miles off the French coast of Brittany, when the ship was en route from the Russian port of Murmansk to Cameroon and was almost unloaded.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that the French Navy, with the support of the UK and other partners, arrested a Russian oil tanker on the sanctions list while the ship was moving in the Atlantic Ocean.
According to unconfirmed information, the captain of the Tagor ship arrested by the French Navy is a Russian citizen, the Russian Embassy in Paris said.
Data from the maritime tracking service VesselFinder shows that the oil tanker Tagor is flying the Madagascar flag and docked nearest in the city of Murmansk, Russia in early May.
