Prudence

The 'Komander', en route from Russia to China with a cargo of 80,000 tons oil, drifted out of the fairway and ran aground after suffering an engine breakdown in the Suez Canal on Oct 28, 2025, at around 9.14 a.m. UTC, near kilometre mark 48, in a section of the channel just south of the Al Salam Bridge, where there is no separation between lanes. Other vessels sailing north through the canal at the time stopped moving for about two to three hoursThe tanker was the last in a southbound convoy, designated as vessel number 19. While 18 vessels in the same convoy passed through safely, 20 northbound ships were temporarily halted, while the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) deployed five tugs to assist the ship. It was successfully refloated at around 11.15 a.m. UTC another tug then began towing the tanker southwards with no reports of pollution or structural damages. It dropped anchor about nine nautical miles north of Ismailia. on the Bitter Lake in pos. 30° 20' N 032° 23' E at 3.30 p.m.,, where it remained sstationary as of Nov 4. Built in 2004, the tanker has had four names and six flags in the past three years. It passed in 2023 to the Gatik Shipmanagement, well-known for its operation of Russian shipping, and reported its flag in 2023 as Gabon, 2024 in Panama, and in 2025 it listed Guyana (which was believed to be false), Comoros, and since September it lists Russia. During these times, the vessel has sailed as 'Heracles', 'Krishna 1', 'Prudence', and since September as 'Komander'. The 'Komander' had a four-day period where it did not transmit AIS data at the anchorage north of Port Said, a hotspot for ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned Russian oil. It was not immediately clear whether the vessel engaged in any STS transfers during that period, but it did not indicate a draught change following the four-day gap. The tanker is listed in the databases as being owned by a Hong Kong company and managed from Russia. The USA, the UK, the EU, Switzerland and Ukraine have all listed it in their sanction packages for transporting Russian oil above the G7 price cap.

The 20 crew members of the 'Krishna 1' was detained by Malaysian authorities for allegedly entering the country's territorial waters without proper documentation. The crew, comprising of 11 Indian, 8 Filipino, and 1 Indonesian nationals, were apprehended on April 11, 2025, after disembarking the tanker at East OPL Malaysia (EOPL). Despite the intervention by a shipping agent, they were subsequently handed over by the Malaysian Army to the district police and are currently being held under Section 6(1)(c) of Malaysia's Immigration Act for illegal entry. The local police was awaiting a comprehensive report from the Immigration Department, which is expected by April 17. Following the detention, the embassies representing the crew's respective countries have been notified.

The European Union has adopted its newest sanctions package on Dec 16, 2024, at the Foreign Affairs Council meeting, adding 52 new vessels, among them the 'Krishna 1', to the sanctions list that have been deemed by the EU to be supporting Russia’s war machine. The vessels that have been sanctioned are primarily involved in circumventing the oil price cap mechanism implemented by the West, in arms deliveries, and in the transportation of stolen grain. This latest package has brought the total number of vessels sanctioned by the EU to 79. The majority of the vessels are involved in the transport of Russian oil and in transporting arms for the Russian military. The sanctions package also targets a total of 54 individuals and 30 entities that are deemed to be bolstering Russia’s war effort. Among them, there are also entities and individuals in China and North Korea who have been deemed to be supplying Russia with dual-use materials to support Russia’s military efforts. Two senior North Korean officials and seven Chinese individuals and companies have been targeted in the latest sanctions. The purpose of the sanctions has been defined to increase the operational costs for Russia by banning them from ports in the EU and hindering them from receiving maritime services.