Spy sailors board Russia's ghost fleet just as the ships leave port. Their task is related to war
Russian cadres with ties to Moscow's military and security services conducted espionage in European waters, working secretly on ships carrying Russian oil, Western and Ukrainian intelligence sources told CNN.
Since 2022, when the invasion of Ukraine began, Moscow has developed a “ghost fleet” of hundreds of oil tankers.
These ships transport Russian oil from its Baltic and Black Sea ports despite Western sanctions, generating hundreds of millions of dollars a year for the Kremlin's budget.
The only Russians on board, hired just before the ship left
In recent months, some of these ships – often registered in countries unrelated to Russia – have hired new crew members shortly before leaving port, according to Ukrainian intelligence services.
US television says it has seen two crew lists for such vessels, where the staff are mostly non-Russian, but the documents also contain two Russian names, as well as their Russian passport details, at the bottom of the list.
The addition of Russians with security experience to the crews of the stealth fleet is causing concern in European capitals as it illustrates how bold the Kremlin's tactics have become.
From discussions with multiple intelligence sources, CNN has determined that several of these men are employed by a secret Russian company called Moran Security. Some of them are mercenaries who previously worked for Russian private military contractors, such as the well-known Wagner group, according to sources the TV quoted.
Moran is a private security firm with ties to the Russian military and intelligence services, Western intelligence sources said.
The firm was sanctioned by the US Treasury in 2024 for providing “armed security services” to Russian state enterprises with the aim of “intensifying pressure on Russia for its cruel and unprovoked war against Ukraine.”
Moran's men have been placed on several oil tankers in Russia's ghost fleet and are often the only Russians on board, according to Ukrainian and Western intelligence sources.
What do the people put by Moscow on the ships of the ghost fleet do
Ukrainian intelligence services said they noticed the introduction of these monitors on the ships of the ghost fleet about six months ago.
A Western intelligence source added that in at least one instance, a Moran agent photographed European military installations from one of the ghost fleet's ships.
The Russians on board are also tasked with monitoring the ship's captains, as most of them are not Russian citizens, according to Oleksandr Stakhnevych of Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service.
A Western intelligence source confirmed this assessment, saying that “in the case of Moran, they are not involved in direct conflicts. They are making sure that those they have contracted act in accordance with the interests of the Kremlin.”
“Everyone knows, but it's hard to prove”
The presence and activities of Russians aboard these vessels is a growing concern for European security services, given the number of ghost fleet vessels sailing near the continent's coasts and the potential for espionage.
Security officials say placing armed men with military experience on these ships is one more tool in the Kremlin's arsenal of hybrid warfare techniques aimed at causing disruption in Europe. Intelligence sources also told CNN that these people engaged in acts of sabotage, but did not provide further details.
“The presence of private armed groups aboard the ships of the ghost fleet is a classic case of plausible deniability,” Jacob Kaarsbo, a former Danish intelligence official, told CNN.
“Everyone who has even a vague idea knows that these people are taking orders from the Russian state, but it's hard to prove,” he added.
Photo: Igor Kardasov | Dreamstime.com
