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Turkey's Beşiktaş cuts ties with Russia after tanker explosion

The owner of the tanker damaged off the coast of Senegal has announced the suspension of all operations with Russian counterparties, citing increased risks to vessels and crews. The company stressed its compliance with sanctions; the day before, several attacks on tankers occurred.

Oleg Bazylewicz

By Oleg Bazylewicz

December 2, 2025 · 1 min read

Turkey's Beşiktaş cuts ties with Russia after tanker explosion

Turkish company Besiktas Shipping announced the suspension of all maritime operations involving Russian counterparties after its tanker was damaged off the coast of Senegal.

Company decision

The firm insists that in its operations it complied with international sanctions and the G7 and EU price cap mechanism. Due to the deterioration of the security situation in the region, the company deemed further risks unacceptable for its vessels and crews.

The security situation in the region has significantly deteriorated, and after assessment we concluded that the risks to our vessels and crews have become unacceptable

– Besiktas Shipping

Besiktas Shipping of Istanbul is one of the largest tanker owners in Turkey; its fleet counts 29 vessels.

Attacks on vessels

The damage to the tanker Mersin off Senegal occurred the day before Ukrainian maritime drones struck two tankers of the "shadow fleet" in the Black Sea off the coast of Turkey as they were heading to a Russian port for oil.

Another tanker under the Russian flag, loaded with sunflower oil, reported a drone attack near the Turkish coast.

Ukraine denies any involvement in the strikes on the tanker Mersin near Dakar on November 27 and on the Russian MIDVOLGA-2 near Turkey on December 2.

A Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Heorhiy Tykhyi, suggested that the attack on the oil tanker, which was heading to Georgia through the Turkish exclusive economic zone, could have been staged by Russia.

Operations and reactions

  • On November 29, the SBU (Security Service of Ukraine) and the Naval Forces struck two tankers of the "shadow fleet" in the Black Sea.
  • Turkey's Foreign Ministry expressed concern over the strikes on the two tankers; the country's president called the incident a worrying escalation.

This is a worrying escalation

– Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

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May 26, 2026