Estonia warned on Thursday that Russia appears willing to defend with military force its shadow fleet of aging tankers dodging international sanctions to keep oil revenue and equipment flowing, even through the territorial waters of European countries.

A Russian Su-35 violated Estonian airspace on May 13, 2025, to disrupt efforts to inspect a ghost fleet tanker, escalating tensions in the Baltic Sea region.

Russia deployed a fighter jet in NATO airspace this week after Estonia tried to inspect a so-called shadow fleet tanker passing the EU-member’s economic area, Estonia’s Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said.