There are various methods the Royal Navy can detain ships, says Prof Kevin Rowlands from the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) and a former Navy captain.
“First, identifying and tracking the vessels is reasonably straight forward. The list of shadow fleet ships is well known and surveillance in UK waters is pretty comprehensive.
“Boarding will rely upon the kind of ship, its location, and native sea and climate circumstances on the time. It may very well be by boat or, extra possible, by helicopter.”
“The navy has boarding groups consisting of sailors and Royal Marines. They are educated to securely embark on the ship, liaise with the crew, search the vessel, verify paperwork and, if vital, divert it below escort to a UK port.”
