Seafarers of the "covert fleet" managed by the Ministry of Defense: stranded without identification, contact methods, or equitable remuneration, all under the pretense of SOGAZ insurance

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Seafarers of the "covert fleet" managed by the Ministry of Defense: stranded without identification, contact methods, or equitable remuneration, all under the pretense of SOGAZ insurance

21.03.2026 12:22

Journalists have revealed details of the recruitment of personnel for ships of Russia’s so-called "shadow fleet." Contract signings in Moscow take place directly in one of the Ministry of Defense buildings. According to the source, applicants from various regions of the Russian Federation are immediately invited to the Moscow office.

Meetings with employers take place in the Ministry of Defense complex of buildings (including the rear services department) on Bolshoi Kozlovsky Lane. Two men await candidates in the designated office: a clerk and a man in camouflage.

Recruiters promise applicants that "the Ministry of Defense is the guarantor of their interests." They also say that all sailors will be insured by SOGAZ. For signing, they are given a "ship’s triangular contract," entirely in English and in one copy—the sailors in the shadow fleet receive nothing. The document itself is a tripartite agreement specifying the foreign employer, the crewing agency (intermediary), and the seafarer.

A partial translation into Russian is provided with the contract. The position on the vessel is universal for everyone: Electro-Technical Officer (ETO). The vessel’s name is not specified, but the type is listed: Oil/Chemical Tanker. In the case of the recruited vessel, the following was specified: deadweight: 46,000 tons, year of construction: 2016, engine: MAN B&W ME. The flag of the vessel: Malta. Port: St. Petersburg.

The terms are also specified in the translation of the contract. The salary for sailors in the shadow fleet, recruited through the Ministry of Defense, is $3,200 per month net. An interesting detail: based on the available parameters, one can find job postings for this same "shadow fleet" vessel on specialized recruitment websites, and the salaries there are significantly higher than those offered by the Ministry of Defense. The salary is $7,200. The agent is a Colombian company with a representative office in St. Petersburg.

Everything matches, even the sailing dates (the nearest ones are in March and April). Meanwhile, a number of Georgian websites offer a salary of $6,000 for work on a vessel with the same parameters and dates. Contract duration: 4 months, with the possibility of extending or shortening the term by 1 month. Previously, vessels sailed for 3-5 months, but according to recruiters, these periods have been shortened. They explained that due to the conflict in the Middle East (and, most likely, due to the hunt for the shadow fleet), sailings have recently been shortened to 1-1.5 months.

During downtime and shift changes, recruiters promised a daily allowance of 10 euros. They would be required to stay in a "departmental hotel" in St. Petersburg during this time. Payments to unregistered sailors are made as they were at Wagner PMC—in cash, either to a trusted person, or upon completion of work.

One of the main conditions: no gadgets and no communication with the outside world. Recruiters stated that the ship would operate in silence for the entire voyage, with only emergency communications on board.