Tracking 'Shadow Fleet' Tactics: US Intercepts Ship Transporting Fuel to Cuba

The US Coast Guard announced on Friday that it had intercepted a ship transporting fuel to Cuba in violation of the oil embargo imposed on the communist island since January.

A statement reported that "in early September, a tactical team from the Coast Guard boarded the vessel (M/V Grace) in the Caribbean Sea" while it was "transiting to Cuba loaded with fuel."

The statement added that "the vessel is believed to have been employing methods commonly used by the (Dark Fleet)," or what is known as the "shadow fleet."

This term refers to ships that transport sanctioned or high-risk goods while concealing their ownership and destination, according to the International Maritime Rescue Federation.

The statement continued that the vessel "Grace" was subsequently escorted to the port of Progreso in eastern Mexico, where "the Mexican Navy confirmed the presence of large quantities of fuel in the vessel's ballast tanks."

The US Coast Guard noted that it had also intercepted and detained the vessel "Jaira Provider" earlier this summer after it was found to be illegally transporting fuel to Cuba.

Relations between Washington and Havana have deteriorated since President Donald Trump returned to power in January 2025.

The Republican president views the communist island, located just 150 kilometers off the coast of Florida, as an exceptional threat to the United States.

Since January, Washington has imposed an oil blockade on the island, which has a population of 9.4 million, plunging the country, already suffering from economic distress, into a severe energy crisis.