Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether any ships of the Russian shadow fleet have entered British waters.
Answered by Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill - Minister of State (Department for Transport)
The UK Government monitors all vessels in UK waters which are of interest to the safety of mariners, the marine environment and the UK’s national security, and has observed suspected Russian shadow fleet vessels transiting through the UK’s territorial sea.
Since October 2024, the Department for Transport’s Voluntary Insurance Reporting Mechanism has challenged over 600 suspected shadow fleet vessels with unknown insurance, a significant portion of the shadow fleet, to provide their insurance as they transit the English Channel.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government for what reason Maritime Counter-Terrorism forces are not used to interdict ships of the Russian shadow fleet when transiting the Channel or other waters close to the UK.
Answered by Lord Coaker - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The UK is committed to countering the Russian Shadow Fleet, a web of rising shadow activity that fuels and finances nefarious activity across the globe, which helps it fuel its illegal war in Ukraine. We are determined to tackle sanctions evasion and shadow fleet activity that threatens our national security and undermines global trade. Working in concert with our allies and partners, we will use the range of tools at our disposal to crackdown on sanctions evasion and illegal maritime activity.
The UK has undertaken a range of actions, such as sanctioning over 500 vessels, to disrupt and deter shadow fleet activity. HMG, including the MOD, is working with international allies to intensify action to have a more assertive approach to counter sanction busting vessels, whilst upholding the international law of the sea.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the sinking of the Ursa Major in December 2024 on the conflict in Ukraine.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The Ministry of Defence are aware of the open-source reports on the sinking of the Ursa Major, however we judge that such an incident would be unlikely to have had a significant impact on the conflict in Ukraine.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will hold discussions with her Irish counterpart on undertaking joint efforts to identify Russia, Iranian and Venezuelan registered oil tankers in British and Irish waters that may be avoiding sanctions on oil.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK and Ireland continue to discuss how we can improve our security cooperation, including maritime and cyber security. On 3 December, the Foreign Secretary spoke to her counterpart Helen McEntee, Ireland's Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Defence, about defence, security and other matters.
That follows the commitments made by the Prime Minister and Taoiseach at the UK-Ireland Summit in March 2025 to deepen defence cooperation.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of tankers owned by individuals outside Russia which are acting as part of the shadow fleet by transporting sanction-breaking oil shipments.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK has now sanctioned 545 ships under its Russia sanctions regulations. Russian oil cargoes carried on ships specified by the UK in the first half of 2025 dropped off by an estimated 28 per cent and were worth approximately $4.5 billion less, comparing prior cargoes to the three months post-specification. Establishing a shadow fleet, including replacing capacity lost to UK and partner sanctions has cost Russia at least $14 billion. Russia's oil export revenues are now at their lowest since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. At the start of last month (December 2025), nearly 180 million barrels of Russian oil were sitting in tankers undelivered - up 28 per cent since August 2025.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the monetary value to Russia of sanction-breaking oil carried in the shadow fleet.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK has now sanctioned 545 ships under its Russia sanctions regulations. Russian oil cargoes carried on ships specified by the UK in the first half of 2025 dropped off by an estimated 28 per cent and were worth approximately $4.5 billion less, comparing prior cargoes to the three months post-specification. Establishing a shadow fleet, including replacing capacity lost to UK and partner sanctions has cost Russia at least $14 billion. Russia's oil export revenues are now at their lowest since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. At the start of last month (December 2025), nearly 180 million barrels of Russian oil were sitting in tankers undelivered - up 28 per cent since August 2025.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of ships in the Russian shadow fleet.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK has now sanctioned 545 ships under its Russia sanctions regulations. Russian oil cargoes carried on ships specified by the UK in the first half of 2025 dropped off by an estimated 28 per cent and were worth approximately $4.5 billion less, comparing prior cargoes to the three months post-specification. Establishing a shadow fleet, including replacing capacity lost to UK and partner sanctions has cost Russia at least $14 billion. Russia's oil export revenues are now at their lowest since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. At the start of last month (December 2025), nearly 180 million barrels of Russian oil were sitting in tankers undelivered - up 28 per cent since August 2025.
Asked by: Will Forster (Liberal Democrat - Woking)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she plans to review sanctions on Russian assets: and whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of amending Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation licensing rules to require owners to maintain sanctioned properties.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We keep our sanctions powers, regimes, designations and measures under review to respond to new developments and changing circumstances.
The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) may issue general or specific licences on behalf of His Majesty's Treasury to allow activities otherwise prohibited by an asset freeze, such as payments for existing obligations or property maintenance. However, a licence only permits these actions - it does not require the designated person to carry them out. Maintenance or repairs will occur only if they choose to do so.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will (a) review and (b) update the UK’s Defence Contribution in the High North strategy, published in March 2022, to ensure it (i) reflects the Government’s policies and (ii) adequately addresses (A) current and (B) emerging security challenges in the arctic region.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The 2025 Strategic Defence Review (SDR) sets out the Government's approach to deterring threats and strengthening security in the Euro-Atlantic area, including the Arctic and High North. The region features strongly in the SDR's strategic thinking, particularly in relation to the Royal Navy's Atlantic Bastion concept (which includes securing the North Atlantic and adjacent waters), the importance of NATO's Northern Flank, our co-operation through the Joint Expeditionary Force and bilaterally with nations such as Norway, and the anticipated geostrategic shifts due to climate change, including increased accessibility and competition in the High North.
The Government continues to monitor developments in the Arctic region closely, including Russia's military posture and capabilities in the region. This is achieved through a combination of intelligence assessments, engagement with allies, and participation in multinational fora such as the JEF and NATO.
NATO is strengthening its deterrence and defence as a result of the increasing threat from Russia and will continue to adapt as necessary.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what a) UK and b) other NATO forces are currently deployed in Greenland.
Answered by Al Carns - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for Veterans)
The UK does not currently have forces deployed in Greenland. Denmark is responsible for the defence of Greenland and maintains a military presence.
NATO has made clear that the Arctic region is a priority for Euro-Atlantic Security, which is why, alongside our NATO Allies, we have increased our defence spending, presence and activities to keep the Arctic safe and deter the collective threat we face from Russia.