Maritime Defense Weekly: Offshore Enforcement and Baltic Exposure
Week in Focus Sanctions Enforcement Moves Further Offshore The United States intercepted and boarded Aquila II (IMO 9281152) in the Indian Ocean, nearly 1,000 nautical miles from where it fled a Venezuelan quarantine zone in January. The 22-year-old Suezmax had falsely broadcast under the Panamanian flag and has a history of extended dark activity and…
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Top 5 Takeaways from America’s Maritime Action Plan
America’s Maritime Action Plan outlines a coordinated effort to rebuild domestic shipbuilding capacity, expand the U.S.-flag fleet, reform procurement, strengthen workforce pipelines, and modernize maritime regulation. Key Takeaways What It Means for Maritime Stakeholders The Maritime Action Plan aligns industrial policy, fleet policy, procurement reform, workforce development, and regulatory modernization into a unified structure. For…
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Cameroon Pledges Crackdown on Ship Registry Flagging 13% of Dark Fleet Tankers
Cameroon’s government has pledged to deregister all shadow fleet tankers following representations from Brussels and amid a surge in registrations from sanctioned, stateless tonnage in late 2025 and early 2026. More than 20 vessels reflagged to Cameroon in the past 30 days, and 43 in the past 60 days, according to Windward Maritime AI™ intelligence….
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Enforcement Shock Accelerates Dark Fleet Reflagging to Russia
At a Glance A Structural Shift in Russia’s Shadow Fleet At least 120 falsely flagged, sanctioned tankers are likely to reflag to Russia’s registry in the coming months, as Western interdictions of stateless shadow fleet vessels accelerates a structural shift in Russia’s oil export logistics. All ships fit the profile and trading pattern of tankers…
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