Russian Warships May Start Escorting Shadow Fleet Tankers, Denmark Warns

With NATO on a collision course with a Trump-sized iceberg, its member states are scrambling to escalate conflicts with Russia to ensure the money keeps flowing, and Denmark is certainly doing its part by warning in late December that Russia’s navy may start escorting the so-called shadow fleet tankers through Danish straits to escalate provocations against NATO countries. Of course, Russia has done nothing of the sort, but with Denmark now in control of the narrative, the actual warships will belong to the West and will sail “defensively” in order to provoke Russia into doing just what the West plans on doing.

According to the Danish Defense Intelligence Service, threats against Denmark have become “more serious,” and Russia now has more options to challenge NATO’s members with “a more threatening military behavior.” This could include letting Russian warships escort tankers exporting millions of barrels of Moscow’s petroleum through the Baltic Sea, on which Russia, naturally, has numerous ports, and so Denmark’s “warning” is about as serious as saying the US may deploy more jack ups in the Gulf of Mexico.

“If this happens, it will increase the level of tension,” the agency said, not saying that an increase in the level of tension is precisely what the agency wants.

Ironically, all this takes place years after Europe intentionally turned a blind eye to smuggled Russian oil, well aware that if said oil was taken away fully from the market, crude prices would soar, which in a world riddled with inflation is not acceptable.

Twelve Northern European nations including Denmark earlier this week announced they would introduce checks on insurance policies of passing Russian tankers. This could be followed up with more tangible actions for ships falling short with their cover.

Denmark will play a crucial role in the implementation of those checks, as its narrow straits are a critical trade artery through which Russian oil has flowed largely unrestrained since the start of the full-scale war in Ukraine, helping fund President Vladimir Putin’s war economy.

Russia is also expected to display more risky behavior toward civil shipping and aviation, Denmark’s foreign intelligence service said. Its toolkit is likely to include military exercise activities near NATO territory, as well as jamming in large geographical areas “without regard to ships’ and aircraft’s communications and GPS signals,” according to the report.

A more threatening behavior toward Denmark’s and other NATO countries’ military aircraft and ships similarly “poses a risk of misunderstandings and minor collisions both in the Baltic Sea and in the Arctic,” it said.