On 22 January 2026, a French Navy task group operating in the western Mediterranean intercepted and boarded the crude oil tanker Grinch, a Comoros-flagged vessel that had sailed from Murmansk and was suspected of belonging to Russia’s sanctions-evading “shadow fleet”. Conducted on the high seas between Spain and Morocco, the operation was ordered at the highest political level, with President Emmanuel Macron announcing that the ship was “subject to international sanctions and suspected of flying a false flag” and vowing that France “will not tolerate any violation”. Official communiqués from the French presidency and the armed forces, relayed by maritime authorities and international agencies, describe an action carried out in accordance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and supported by allied intelligence. Beyond the diplomatic signal, the imagery released by the French Navy and by President Macron on X reveals the central role of naval aviation, in particular an NH90 NFH and an AS565 Panther, in turning political intent into a controlled, enforceable boarding at sea. Read Full Defense News At This Link.
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| French Navy helicopters played a central role in the high-seas boarding of the tanker Grinch in the western Mediterranean, an operation ordered by President Emmanuel Macron that translated sanctions policy into concrete maritime enforcement action (Picture Source: French Navy / Presidency of the French Republic/ U.S. Navy) |