Experts state that for the first time this year, Western allies of Ukraine invoked Article 110 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea to exercise the right of boarding and inspection on Russian "shadow tankers" circumventing sanctions. The United States, the United Kingdom, and the European Union are intensifying compliance checks, aiming to disrupt Russian oil shipments and increase their costs. Nikolai Patrushev, Chairman of the Russian Maritime Board, stated on October 12 that Western countries are attempting to intercept Russian vessels and plan to blockade the Baltic Sea and other key shipping routes. Since the implementation of sanctions in 2022, Russia has been exporting about half of its crude oil through a "shadow fleet" of vessels that often do not meet environmental and safety standards. This year, Russia has registered 340 tankers under its own flag. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that a reconciliation between Donald Trump and Moscow would prolong the Russia-Ukraine war.