Italian Navy boards sanctioned Russian shadow fleet tanker Toa Payoh

The master of the oil tanker Toa Payoh initially refused to cooperate with Italian naval authorities on Sunday, 2 August, prompting a military boarding team to be inserted via helicopter from the flagship Thaon di Revel. The interception took place in international waters west of Pantelleria, an island situated between Sicily and Tunisia.

The operation, which lasted approximately two hours, was conducted under the mandate of Operation EUNAVFOR MED IRINI. While the vessel was not seized, Italian authorities have recovered documentation and information that are currently under review to determine if further legal action will be taken. This move marks the second time in less than two weeks that an EU mission has boarded a vessel linked to Russia's "shadow fleet," following a July 20 inspection of the tanker South Star, according to Naval News.

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The Toa Payoh was sailing under a declared Cameroonian flag, having departed Cotonou, Benin, on 16 July bound for Istanbul.

The "shadow fleet" consists of aging tankers and vessels that use complex ownership structures and reflagging to maintain Russian crude exports. By operating outside conventional Western shipping, insurance, and financial channels, these ships allow the Russian regime to bypass price caps and sanctions penalties, stealthily delivering oil to unsanctioned destinations for processing and market entry, as reported by Naval News.

To justify the boarding in international waters, the Italian Ministry of Defence cited Article 110 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). This specific legal framework permits a warship to verify a merchant vessel's nationality if there is reasonable suspicion that the ship is without nationality or is not entitled to fly the flag it claims.

The boarding was a multinational effort. The lead vessel, the ITS Thaon di Revel, is a Paolo Thaon di Revel-class Multipurpose Offshore Patrol Vessel (PPA) designed to combine the capabilities of a frontline surface combatant with offshore patrol endurance. Support for the operation was provided by the Hellenic Navy frigate Kanaris and a Polish M28B1R Bryza maritime patrol aircraft operating from Sigonella Air Base in Sicily, according to Naval News.

Operation EUNAVFOR MED IRINI

• Launched: 2020 by the European Union.
• Primary Mandate: Enforcement of the United Nations arms embargo on Libya.
• Expanded Scope: Monitoring illegal arms shipments, collecting data on illicit petroleum exports from Libya, disrupting human-smuggling networks, and inspecting vessels suspected of using fraudulent flags.

Naval News notes that the United States has previously seized seven oil tankers accused of aiding sanctioned countries, while France, Belgium, and the UK have also boarded suspicious Russian vessels in European waters.

"I would like to congratulate the crew of the ship Thaon di Revel and all the service personnel involved in the operation for the professionalism, preparation and resolve they have shown. This activity too is a concrete demonstration of Italy's contribution to the security of the Mediterranean and to the European Union's action."

Guido Crosetto, Defence Minister, via Yahoo News

Italian authorities are currently reviewing the information and documentation obtained during the inspection to determine the vessel's status and whether the evidence warrants subsequent legal proceedings.

Operational Timeline and Logistics

The interception of the Toa Payoh occurred on the morning of Sunday, 2 August, following a voyage that began on 16 July at the port of Cotonou in Benin.

The mission used a coordinated multinational surveillance and intervention network to secure the tanker in the central Mediterranean:

• Command and Insertion: ITS Thaon di Revel (Italian Navy PPA) served as the flagship, launching the helicopter that inserted the military boarding team.
• Surface Support: The Hellenic Navy frigate Kanaris provided additional naval presence.
• Aerial Surveillance: A Polish M28B1R Bryza maritime patrol aircraft, based at Sigonella Air Base, provided oversight.

This operational structure allowed the Italian Navy to transition from a requested cooperation—which the tanker's master initially denied—to a forced boarding in approximately two hours. According to Naval News, the engagement served as a real-world validation of the PPA design, which integrates command functions with aviation and boarding capabilities.

The encounter is part of an escalating pattern of enforcement. The EU has sanctioned a number of ships suspected of being part of Russia’s “shadow fleet,” a network of vessels accused of helping Moscow circumvent restrictions on oil exports imposed after the invasion of Ukraine.