"According to the participants of the performances, their goal is to remind the civilized world of the barbaric actions of Moscow, which for many years and decades has systematically violated international law," a source in Ukraine’s military intelligence agency (HUR) told the Kyiv Independent.
"I have great hope that an agreement for a ceasefire in Ukraine will be reached this weekend," German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on May 9, shortly before traveling to Kyiv alongside the leaders of France, Poland, and the U.K.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk will arrive in Kyiv early on May 10.
The United States embassy in Kyiv on May 9 issued a warning that Russia could launch "a potentially significant" attack in the coming days, despite Putin's self-declared Victory Day "truce."
The sanctioned oil tankers have transported over $24 billion in cargo since 2024, according to Downing Street. The U.K. has now sanctioned more shadow fleet vessels than any other country.
Washington and its partners are considering additional sanctions if the parties do not observe a ceasefire, with political and technical negotiations between Europe and the U.S. intensifying since last week, Reuters' source said.
The Kyiv Independent’s contributor Ignatius Ivlev-Yorke spent a day with a mobile team from the State Emergency Service in Nikopol in the south of Ukraine as they responded to relentless drone, artillery, and mortar strikes from Russian forces just across the Dnipro River. Nikopol is located across from the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the city of Enerhodar.
Photo for illustrative purposes. The oil tanker Eagle S is seen anchored near the Kilpilahti port in Porvoo, on the Gulf of Finland on Jan. 7, 2025. (Antti Aimo-Koivisto/Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty Images)
The Estonian Navy detained an oil tanker belonging to Russia's so-called shadow fleet in the Gulf of Finland on April 11, the Estonian media outlet ERR reported, citing Estonian Navy Commander Cdre Ivo Värk.
The vessel, called Kiwala, was detained off the Estonian coast between the island of Aegna and the port of Muuga, east of Tallinn, while en route to the Russian port of Ust-Luga. Previously, the tanker was sanctioned by the EU, the U.K., Canada, and Switzerland.
The move marks Estonia’s first detention of a shadow fleet vessel. Estonian authorities said the tanker lacks a flag state, meaning it is not authorized to sail in international waters.
"We are acting in a coordinated and targeted manner to protect our security and environment, and we are implementing our right to check suspected ships passing through Estonia's exclusive economic zone," Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said.
There were 24 people on board, according to the navy chief. The vessel's captain is a Chinese citizen, and the rest of the crew are nationals of Myanmar.
Värk said that the purpose of the detention was to "check the ship's documents and legal status," adding that the move is not related to damage to critical infrastructure. The vessel will be detained until technical issues are resolved.
Russia's "shadow fleet" consists of aging tankers used to circumvent sanctions, including those imposed by the EU, U.K., and U.S. Ukraine recently sanctioned captains of these vessels, targeting Russian and Iranian nationals involved in illicit oil exports.
A growing portion of Russia's oil tanker fleet is being forced to reflag as sanctions intensify, disrupting Moscow's oil export logistics and forcing tankers to re-register in less reputable jurisdictions, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 23.
Kateryna Denisova works as a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a news editor at the NV media outlet for four years, covering mainly Ukrainian and international politics. Kateryna holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Taras Shevchenko University of Kyiv. She also was a fellow at journalism schools in the Czech Republic and Germany.
