France’s Navy has intercepted an oil tanker sailing from Russia in the western Mediterranean, with President Emmanuel Macron saying the vessel was subject to international sanctions and suspected of using a false flag.

In a message posted on X on Thursday, 22 January 2026, Macron said the operation took place on the high seas and was conducted with the support of several allied countries, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

French maritime authorities identified the ship as the Grinch. According to officials cited by the Associated Press, it was intercepted off the southern Spanish coastal town of Almeria after intelligence was provided by the United Kingdom. The same officials said the vessel was flying a flag linked to the Comoros Islands and had an Indian crew.

Macron said a judicial investigation had been opened and that the vessel had been diverted. The case was referred to the prosecutor in Marseille, which handles maritime matters.

France has been among a group of Western governments that say Russia relies on a “shadow fleet” of tankers to sustain oil exports while evading sanctions. Macron said on X that shadow fleet activity “contribute[s] to financing” Russia’s war against Ukraine.

We will not tolerate any violation.

This morning, the French Navy boarded an oil tanker coming from Russia, subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag.

The operation was conducted on the high seas in the Mediterranean,… pic.twitter.com/zhXVdzPx1r

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) January 22, 2026

The term “shadow fleet” is used by governments and industry observers to describe vessels that often operate through opaque ownership structures, frequent changes of name and flag, and practices designed to reduce scrutiny.

Thursday’s interception adds to a series of Western actions aimed at enforcing sanctions on maritime oil trade. Reuters reported that the Grinch had sailed from Murmansk in northern Russia and was intercepted between Spain and Morocco.

The interception also follows earlier French action against a tanker linked by authorities to sanctions evasion. In late September 2025, French forces boarded the Boracay off France’s Atlantic coast. French prosecutors said the ship’s captain, a Chinese national, would face trial in February 2026 over alleged failures to justify the vessel’s nationality and to comply with orders. Reports at the time described the Boracay as blacklisted by the European Union and suspected of being part of Russia’s sanction-busting oil trade.

Separately, the United States has conducted its own interdictions of tankers it says are linked to sanctions violations. On 7 January 2026, Reuters reported that US forces seized the Marinera in the Atlantic near Iceland after a pursuit lasting more than two weeks. The ship was previously known as Bella 1 and had been renamed and registered under a Russian flag. US Coast Guard intercepted another sanctioned tanker, the Panama-flagged M Sophia, in Latin American waters the same day.

Bella 1 later registered as Marinera had “posed as a Russian tanker” to circumvent sanctions and avoid accountability. Russian officials described the US seizure as piracy and said contact with the vessel had been lost after boarding.