To impose sanctions with respect to the shadow fleet of the Russian Federation, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Risch (for himself, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Cotton, Mr. Whitehouse, …
Summary
What This Bill Does
The SHADOW Fleet Sanctions Act of 2025 imposes comprehensive sanctions on Russia's "shadow fleet" - a network of vessels used to transport Russian oil, arms, and other goods while evading international sanctions and the crude oil price cap. The bill aims to cut off Russia's ability to fund its war in Ukraine by targeting the ships, ports, insurers, and individuals that help circumvent Western sanctions.
Who Benefits and How
-
Ukraine and Central/Eastern European allies: Receive up to $200 million from the Countering Russian Influence Fund to combat Russian aggression, disinformation, and cyber threats. Ukraine also benefits from expedited arms sales with reduced congressional notification periods.
-
US LNG and oil producers: May gain market share as sanctions on Russian Arctic LNG projects (Yamal, Arctic LNG 1-3) and extended pipeline sanctions push European customers toward alternative suppliers.
-
Legitimate maritime insurers: Benefit as Russian shadow fleet vessels with inadequate insurance face sanctions, potentially driving business to compliant Western insurance providers.
-
Sanctions enforcement agencies: The Office of Sanctions Coordination and Office of Foreign Assets Control receive $30 million combined for FY2026-2027 to modernize infrastructure and expand staffing.
Who Bears the Burden and How
-
Russian shadow fleet operators: Face asset freezes, visa bans, and exclusion from the US financial system. Captains and senior crew members are also subject to personal sanctions.
-
Chinese and Indian port operators: Risk sanctions for accepting oil from vessels violating the price cap or under US sanctions.
-
Foreign suppliers to Russia's defense industry: Companies selling CNC tools, semiconductors, nitrocellulose for munitions, and military-grade fiber optic cables to Russia face mandatory sanctions and visa revocations.
-
Flag-of-convenience countries: Must meet new minimum standards for registry operations or face US pressure and potential consequences.
-
US taxpayers: Bear the cost of $230 million in authorized appropriations for sanctions enforcement and countering Russian influence.
Key Provisions
-
Mandates sanctions within 90 days on shadow fleet vessels exhibiting unsafe maritime behavior, lacking adequate insurance, or evading the crude oil price cap
-
Authorizes sanctions on Chinese and Indian ports accepting Russian oil above the price cap
-
Extends Nord Stream pipeline sanctions and removes sunset provisions
-
Creates a public database of vessels suspected of sabotage or illicit activities
-
Requires regular presidential determinations on Russian military escalation in the Baltic Sea
-
Establishes minimum standards for flag state registries to prevent sanctions circumvention
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Imposes comprehensive sanctions on Russia's shadow fleet of vessels used to evade oil price caps and international sanctions, and provides support for Ukraine.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Close sanctions loopholes by targeting Russia's shadow fleet of vessels evading oil price caps, coordinate with international allies, and provide additional support for Ukraine."
Likely Beneficiaries
- Ukraine (receives security assistance and arms sales support)
- Price Cap Coalition countries (enhanced enforcement of sanctions)
- Department of State Office of Sanctions Coordination (receives funding and authorization)
- Office of Foreign Assets Control (receives funding)
- US defense contractors (Ukraine arms sales expedited)
- Legitimate maritime insurance companies (removes unfair competition from sanctioned insurers)
Likely Burden Bearers
- Russian shadow fleet vessel owners and operators
- Russian Federation oil/gas sector
- Foreign persons facilitating sanctions evasion (ship-to-ship transfers, port services)
- Chinese and Indian ports accepting sanctioned oil
- Flag state registries not meeting minimum standards
- Foreign persons selling goods/services to Russian defense industrial base
- Persons with interests in Russian Arctic LNG projects
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_president"
- → President of the United States
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of State (primary) or Secretary of Treasury (in coordination)
- "the_administrator"
- → Not applicable
- "the_president"
- → President of the United States
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense (jointly for some sections)
Note: 'The Secretary' generally refers to Secretary of State but in some sections requires coordination with Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Commerce, or Secretary of Energy depending on the specific mandate.
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Verified documentation evidencing protection and indemnity insurance with audited financial statements of the insurer; does not include insurance from Russia or insurers providing coverage to sanctioned vessels.
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; House Committee on Foreign Affairs and Committee on Financial Services.
Any individual who directly or indirectly exercises substantial control over a vessel or owns not less than 25 percent of the vessel.
The price cap for crude oil and petroleum products from Russia established by the Price Cap Coalition.
An individual or entity that is not a United States person.
A vessel that is not owned or operated by a United States person.
Having actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, circumstance, or result.
Oil of any kind, gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation fuel, fuel oil, kerosene, any product from refining crude oil, LPG, natural gas liquids, petrochemical feedstocks, condensate, waste mixtures containing oil products, and other liquid hydrocarbon compounds.
International coalition of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, EU, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK, and the United States.
A petroleum product extracted, refined, processed, or otherwise produced in the Russian Federation.
A citizen or national of Russia or an entity organized under Russian laws or subject to Russian government jurisdiction.
Any foreign vessel(s) used or directed by Russia to move oil, arms, and other goods for the purpose of circumventing international sanctions.
Actions, or preparations for actions, taken with intent to cause defective production, operation, or damage to critical undersea infrastructure including energy pipelines, offshore energy facilities, or subsea cables.
A US citizen or permanent resident; an entity organized under US laws including foreign branches; or a person in the United States.
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology