French troops raid mystery Russian 'shadow ship' behind Europe airport drone chaos
The shadow vessel was first built in 2007 and had been anchored off the coast of western France for a number of days.
French special forces troops have reportedly raided a suspected Russian vessel linked to drones wreaking havoc in NATO airspace.
Listen to this article
The oil tanker is believed to be one of three ships in Vladimir Putin’s “Shadow Fleet” which has reportedly played a key role in deploying drones across Europe in recent weeks.
French soldiers raided the ship after it was seized off the coast of Saint-Nazaire, Le Parisien reports.
European leaders were alerted to the “Shadow Ship” after it was spotted off the coast of Denmark on the night of a drone incursion, which forced Copenhagen airport to shut.
Read more: Bomb threat forces closure of Oktoberfest fairgrounds after deadly Munich blast
The 801-foot vessel was blacklisted on September 25, specialist website The Maritime Executive said.
President Emmanuel Macron refused to confirm if the ship had been raided, but confirmed on Wednesday it was under investigation for "serious offences".
"There were some very serious offences committed by this crew, which justify the current judicial procedure," Macron told reporters from Copenhagen.
The Shadow vessel was first built in 2007 and had been anchored off the coast of western France for a number of days.
Experts are convinced the vessel didn’t act alone and was most likely aided in by other ships, including one named Astrol 1, which sailed through the Øresund Strait on the night of the Denmark drone sightings.
Macron added European leaders must "remain very careful" what they say in regard to Putin’s “Shadow fleet.”
This comes just hours after Putin called up more than 100,000 men for military service, the largest number since 2016.
Russia is preparing for its largest military call-up in nearly a decade, with President Vladimir Putin ordering 135,000 men aged 18 to 30 into routine service between October and December.
The Kremlin insists conscription is not the same as mobilisation for combat in Ukraine. However, reports suggest conscripts have previously been sent to the front line after completing training
This comes as Russia battles mounting losses along a 1,000-kilometre front line.
According to the UK Ministry of Defence, over one million Russian troops have been killed or wounded since the war began in 2022.
Putin has steadily increased conscription by around 5% each year and last September expanded the military to 1.5 million active personnel, making it one of the world’s largest armed forces.
With an additional 160,000 men drafted this spring, 2025 is on course to see the heaviest recruitment drive since 2016.