London, Jun 15 (PTI): An Indian man arrested by UK authorities was identified on Monday as Captain Ajay Pant and charged in connection with alleged violation of Western sanctions on Russia. The arrest was made during a joint operation over the weekend between the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and the British armed forces to intercept a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker in the English Channel. “Indian national Ajay Pant, 38, has been charged with contravening Reg 46Z9B Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 and directly or indirectly supplying or delivering by ship prohibited oil / oil products from Russia to a third country during the period of June 2026,” the NCA said. Pant will appear at Southampton Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday after the UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) authorised the charges against him following a review of the file submitted by the NCA. Meanwhile, the remaining 24 crew members, from India and Georgia, remain on board the vessel, the agency said. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer had confirmed on Sunday that the vessel SMYRTOS was boarded by Royal Marine Commandos and specially trained law enforcement officers from the NCA in the first UK-led operation of its kind. “Following the interdiction of a Russian shadow fleet vessel in the early hours of 14 June, a 38-year-old Indian national has been arrested by officers from the National Crime Agency on suspicion of suspected sanctions offences under the Russia regulations,” an NCA spokesperson said in a statement earlier. “He has been taken into custody where he will be interviewed by NCA investigators. As our investigation remains ongoing, we will not be commenting further at this time,” the spokesperson said. NCA said its officers worked alongside the armed forces to board and seize the sanctioned Russian shadow fleet oil tanker, which remains at anchorage off the Dorset coast in south-west England. Shadow fleets refer to vessels operating outside maritime regulations, including using covert methods to disguise ownership and origin. “The NCA remains committed to working (with) partners to tackle Russia’s sanctions evasion. This is now an ongoing NCA criminal investigation so we can’t comment further at this time,” said Graeme Biggar, NCA Director General. On Sunday, Starmer issued a statement to state that the operation “delivers yet another blow to Russia” and reminds those backing Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine that they “cannot hide”. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said SMYRTOS will be provisionally moved to an anchorage and monitored for any environmental or safety concerns. “Russia relies on its shadow fleet to fund their conflict in Ukraine and our interdiction delivers a blow to Putin’s illegal war,” said UK Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis. The military operation, which lasted six hours, was supported with aircraft from the Maritime Air Group – Chinooks, Merlin Mk4 and Wildcat – a Royal Air Force (RAF) P-8 aircraft, as well as HMS Sutherland and HMS Ledbury. The enforcement action over the weekend is said to have taken place in international waters in accordance with domestic and international law, following an agreement in March that British armed forces and law enforcement officers were able to board shadow fleet vessels. According to the MoD, the shadow fleet of over 700 vessels is responsible for carrying 75 per cent of Russia’s sanctioned oil and provides a critical lifeline for the Kremlin.
It is credited with generating a “war fund” that supplies missiles and drones targeting “innocent Ukrainian civilians and sustaining Russia’s illegal war”. “The UK is a leader in tackling the shadow fleet, having already sanctioned over 500 vessels. And these sanctions are working, Russia’s oil and gas revenues fell by 24 per cent year-on-year in 2025,” the MoD said. PTI AK RD RD
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