Greenpeace Icebreaker Documents Abandoned Shadow Fleet Tanker in Black Sea

Greenpeace's icebreaker Arctic Sunrise arrived at Burgas Bay, Bulgaria, on August 11, 2026. Activists boarded the sanctioned Russian shadow fleet tanker Kairos and painted "No Gas + Oil" across its hull in white paint.

The Maritime Executive reported that the Arctic Sunrise team had documented oil slicks around the Kairos in the days before the action. BTA, Bulgaria's national news agency, confirmed the protest and identified the Kairos as a tanker sanctioned by the European Union and the United Kingdom for transporting Russian petroleum products.

Abandoned. No flag. Sanctioned. The Kairos, a 274-metre tanker, has sat at anchor in Burgas Bay since Ukrainian forces damaged it in November 2025. Bulgarian authorities inspected the tanker and said they found no confirmed fuel leakage in the surrounding water as of their most recent check.

Greenpeace launched the action as the opening move in a broader Black Sea campaign targeting Russia's shadow fleet. The Arctic Sunrise carried activists from Bulgaria, Ukraine, Spain, the United States, and the Philippines, according to BTA.