Power has been restored to the damaged ship Eventin and the tanker can maneuver, but as of Thursday, January 16, it has ban on leaving the port in Sassnitz, Germany. Customs services check whether it is loaded oil comes from Russia. The ship flies the Panamanian flag but is classified as part of Russia's “shadow fleet.” German authorities suspect that the oil on board is embargoed goods. Initially, the tanker was to be towed to Skagen, Denmark.
Two incidents with tankers in a short period of time. Germany controls
Eventin was on his way from Russia to Egypt with almost 100,000 people. tons of oil on board. Last Thursday evening, all his systems failed. As it was in German territorial waters at the time, the Central Maritime Emergency Command intervened to prevent a potential oil spill and coordinate further actions.
Shortly after the rescue operation involving the Eventin tanker, another tanker from Russia reported problems off the coast of Rügen over the weekend. The crew of the Jazz tanker reported an engine failure. As reported by press agencies, the crew solved the problems themselves after a few hours. Jazz is currently moored off the coast of Skagen in northern Denmark, where the Eventin was also scheduled to sail.
Unlike the Eventin Jazz tanker It is not on Greenpeace's list of shadow fleet shipsor about 190 ships used by Russia for transport crude oil. It is possible that Russia is using foreign-flagged tankers to circumvent an international oil embargo imposed because of its aggression against Ukraine. Both ships that found themselves near Rügen have one thing in common: they fly the flag of Panama. But why is the flag of this Central American country so important?
Easy ship registration in Panama. World leader
One possible reason is the ease of registration: Panama maintains a so-called open registry. This means that any natural or legal person may register a ship under its flag – regardless of the country the unit comes from. The number of registered vessels is also not limited.
Panama, a country with 4.4 million inhabitants, leads in the number of registered ships. According to the UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) body, in 2023, approximately 16 percent of commercial ships worldwide were flagged in Panama. The Maritime Executive website also puts the country in a record position. In 2023 the number of ships increased to 8,540, which puts Panama first.
Cost savings. “Low fees”
– Panama is a typical flag of convenience country, says Alexander Proelss, professor of international maritime law at the University of Hamburg, in an interview with DW. – Such countries make it possible companies shipping companies to register their ships for relatively low fees and thus fly under their flag – he explains. In addition, it is possible to circumvent certain wage standards and strict shipping regulations. On the other hand, for Panama, numerous registrations are a lucrative business.
– Regardless of Russia's war against Ukraine, this is a problem that has been known for decades and in connection with it the principle of flag sovereignty in maritime law is difficult to change – says Proelss. He adds that all attempts so far have ended in failure.
Serving alcohol instead of prohibition. Big criticism
Record registration numbers in Panama have a rich history. The first large wave of flag withdrawal, i.e. changing the national flag – without changing the ownership structure – began at the end of the First World War.
During American Prohibition, American ships could not serve alcohol, but could do so under the Panamanian flag. It is at this time an open ship register was introducedwhich also helped Americans bypass the standards in the field of wages and working conditions in force in USA. Panama was the first to introduce an open register, followed by Honduras and Liberia. According to a blog run by the University of Bremen, this practice especially intensified in the 1980s.
This was met with a lot of criticism: European countries tried to counteract this with offshore registries that were introduced in areas dependent on a larger country with a specific flag. They were intended to offer shipping companies favorable terms, including less stringent regulations and lower taxes, while the parent flag state retained administrative control.
Hands tied. The law gives limited room for maneuver
In principle, neither shipping under a “foreign flag” nor travel through certain waters can be prevented. – A blanket travel ban on suspected tankers would not be consistent with international maritime law, explains Proelss. – Only the UN Security Council could decide otherwise, but it would fail due to the veto of Russia and China – he claims and adds that this is why no efforts have been made in this direction. In his opinion, the European Union could, however, implement such a solution with respect to ships flying the Russian flag.
The Panama Shipping Registry declares that it strives to ensure safety. According to The Maritime Executive website, authorities announced that approximately 160 ships were removed from the register in 2022. Their average age was said to be approximately 17 years. The vessels removed included 78 fishing vessels linked to unreported and unregulated fishing.