The seizure of the DF Peak tanker by French naval forces was described by the Russian Embassy in a conversation with RIA Novosti as a flagrant violation of international law.
Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the vessel, which had been sailing under the flag of Benin, was stopped in the Indian Ocean.
According to the diplomats, Paris did not notify Moscow of its actions. It is currently being verified whether Russians are part of the ship's crew.
Similar incidents on the part of the French military have already occurred: they detained a foreign tanker, linking its activities to Moscow. Thus, at the end of May, the vessel Tagor, which was traveling from Russia, was stopped. It was escorted by the Navy to a mooring site. In early July, the tanker left the territorial waters of the republic.
In mid-August, President Vladimir Putin said that the Kremlin was recording attempts by the authorities of a number of countries to restrict the movement of vessels of Russian companies. He stressed that Moscow would respond to all such attempts in kind, and not necessarily in the same waters where the attacks are planned.