Much of Russia's tanker fleet will be forced to change the flag they fly as US and UK sanctions put pressure on Moscow's shipping network.

Bloomberg reports this.

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The Barbados Shipping Registry said it will ask 46 ships to take down the country's flag by the end of the month as a result of UK sanctions.. Fourteen of them are also under US sanctions. In addition, earlier this month the Panama Ship Registry announced that it had begun delisting 68 vessels that were subject to U.S. sanctions..

While all ships are likely to receive new flags, many ships serving Moscow's interests have already had to switch to unusual service providers several times since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It underscores the devastating impact sanctions can have on the extensive logistics system that helps Russia keep its oil and military machinery running.. The last steps followed the most large -scale sanctions against Russian exports that were introduced at the beginning of this month.

Sailing under the flag of Barbados was a real revolution for Russian shipping, since it is one of the most authoritative countries in the world registering ships. Flag states play a key role in ensuring maritime safety standards, and Russia has often had to turn to lesser-known countries in the industry when it lost access to blue chip services..

Nevertheless, Giovanni Chinillo, the executive director of the Barbados naval register of the vessels located in London, said that the country has no sanctions against Russia, but follows Great Britain’s rules due to good relations between the two states. As a result, Barbados will not de-fly ships that are sanctioned by the US unless they are also sanctioned by the UK..

Some Barbado vessels have already been re-registered in other countries, including Tanzania and San Tome and Principi, according to the Equasis marine database.

Panama, in turn, said that she began to annul 68 ships after she took a rule that brought the country into line with the sanctions of the United States, the European Union, the UK and the United Nations..

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