Ukraine imposes sanctions on Russian 'shadow fleet' captains, cultural heritage looters

President Volodymyr Zelensky has approved sanctions against 57 captains of Russia’s "shadow fleet"—a network of tankers used to evade sanctions on Russia's oil trade—and 55 individuals involved in looting Ukraine’s cultural heritage in occupied Crimea.

The measure, adopted by Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council on Feb. 5, targets 56 Russian citizens and one Iranian national engaged in illicit oil exports through ship-to-ship transfers and other methods to bypass price caps.

These sanctions mark the first instance of individual accountability for shadow fleet captains aiding Russia’s oil trade. The list includes captains of sanctioned tankers operated by Sovcomflot, a company already blacklisted by the U.S. and U.K.

By restricting experienced captains from participating in these operations, Ukraine aims to disrupt Russia’s oil trade and increase operational costs for its shadow fleet.

Additionally, sanctions have been imposed on Russian officials and cultural figures responsible for illegal excavations and the removal of Ukrainian artifacts from Crimea. Among those targeted are senior officials from Russia’s Ministry of Culture, the Russian Academy of Sciences, and directors of major state-run museums, including the Hermitage and the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts. They face asset freezes and international travel restrictions.

The sanctions list also includes Yelena Morozova, the Russian-appointed "director" of the National Preserve of Tauric Chersonesos in occupied Crimea, who was featured in the Kyiv Independent's latest documentary on the illegal removal of artifacts from two museums in southern Kherson in the fall of 2022.