- On 28 November 2025 Russia failed in its attempt to rejoin the UN’s International Maritime Organisation (IMO| Council, the key global shipping governance body, having lost its seat in 2023. As the only major maritime nation to be excluded from the elected Council, this represents a diplomatic setback for Russia, limiting its influence over regulatory decisions affecting global shipping, tanker operations, and Arctic maritime rules.
- Russia attempted to rejoin the IMO Council despite its continuing shadow fleet strategy, which seeks to evade Western sanctions, including the $60 per barrel oil price cap imposed on Russia after the illegal 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Russia’s shadow fleet, comprising 600-1,000 aging tankers, uses opaque ownership, ship-to-ship transfers, and false Automatic Identification System positions to sustain Russia’s oil exports. The poor condition of shadow fleet vessels presents ongoing environmental risks at sea.
- Russia’s failure to rejoin the IMO Council follows Russia’s September 2025 failure to rejoin the UN’s International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO| Council, and the ICAO’s 03 October 2025 formal condemnation of Russia for interfering with satellite navigation signals in Europe, endangering air travel. Russia was removed from the ICAO Council in 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Russia’s subsequent confiscation of leased air assets.
Latest Defence Intelligence update on the situation in Ukraine - 12 December 2025.
— Ministry of Defence 🇬🇧 (@DefenceHQ) December 12, 2025
Find out more about Defence Intelligence's use of language: https://t.co/PsqvTqrA32#StandWithUkraine pic.twitter.com/iXGmxMkoAt
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