TASS reported on April 16 that French authorities confirmed that they had lifted the detention order for the oil tanker Deyna after the ship owner completed the obligation to pay the fine according to the court's ruling.
This ship has now left the waters under French sovereignty, closing an eye-catching incident in the Mediterranean in recent weeks.
According to the French Mediterranean Maritime Administration, the decision was made after a court in Marseille on April 15 concluded that the ship owner violated regulations by failing to provide documents proving ship registration, specifically the situation of "no national flag". The fine has been transferred to the French Agency for the Administration and Recovery of Confiscated Assets (AGRASC).
Not only paying the fine, the ship owner also committed to quickly re-register the ship's nationality according to international regulations. Throughout the journey leaving French waters, Deyna ship was still placed under the close supervision of competent maritime authorities.
Previously, on March 20, the French Navy conducted an inspection operation on the Deyna ship in the western Mediterranean. The ship was then flying the Mozambique flag and was believed to have departed from the Russian port of Murmansk.
The incident quickly attracted attention when French President Emmanuel Macron declared that this was part of Russia's so-called "dark fleet" - a network of oil tankers aimed at evading sanctions.
The term "dark fleet" is used by the West to refer to oil tankers operating with complex ownership structures, frequently changing national flags or turning off positioning signals to avoid being tracked. These ships are suspected of playing an important role in maintaining the flow of Russian oil to the global market despite restrictions from the West.
Reacting to the moves of France and the European Union (EU), Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova declared that Moscow will use all necessary tools to protect the principle of freedom of navigation.
Russia believes that the EU's maritime control measures are contrary to international law and could increase tensions.
