Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference during the European Political Community summit in Copenhagen, Denmark, October 2, 2025. REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw Purchase Licensing Rights , opens new tab

KYIV, Oct 7 (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Russia on Tuesday of using oil tankers for intelligence gathering and sabotage operations.

Zelenskiy, writing in a post on Telegram after receiving a briefing from Ukraine’s foreign intelligence chief, said his country was cooperating with allies on the matter.

“Currently, Russians are using tankers not only to earn money for the war, but also for reconnaissance and even sabotage activities. It is entirely possible to stop this,” he said.

Speaking later in his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said foreign intelligence chief Oleh Ivashchenko described in his report how Russia was using tankers from its “shadow fleet” to “conduct sabotage and destabilising operations in Europe.”

“Recent cases of drones being launched from tankers are one such example,” he said. “We are sharing this information with partners and it is important that their response to Russia be real.”

Reporting by Yuliia Dysa. Writing by Max Hunder. Editing by Mark Potter, Ron Popeski and Mark Porter

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