Russia uses tankers to launch drones against Europe, Zelenskyy says

Russia is using shadow fleet tankers as platforms to launch and control drones attacking European countries.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this, citing intelligence data, in his evening address on September 28.

According to Zelenskyy, this is further confirmation that waterways, including the Baltic Sea, must be closed to Russian tankers, at least those of the shadow fleet.

«Intelligence indicates that the Russians are using tankers to launch and operate drones against European countries. This is yet more evidence why the Baltic Sea and other seas must be closed to Russian tankers — at the very least to the shadow fleet,» he said.

The President added that Ukraine is negotiating with allies — including the United States — on effective measures to pressure Russia to change its position and end the war.

«We also count on strong steps from the United States. We discussed with President Trump what could truly push Russia to change its position and stop the war. The world has tools that can work in a genuinely peace-making way,» Zelenskyy said.

He also discussed the situation with leaders of Finland and Norway. During the talks, they addressed security guarantees and pressure on Russia through its tanker infrastructure.

«Today, I spoke with the President of Finland and thanked him for his support. We coordinated contacts with our partners, particularly with the United States. It is important that we steadily move toward finalizing security guarantees — those measures that can both help bring this war to an end and deter Russia from any further aggression. I also spoke with the Prime Minister of Norway. We discussed today’s Russian strike,» the Ukrainian President said.