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Dark Waters Ahead: EU Maritime Security Integration in Response to the Russian Shadow Fleet

Boonsom, Jessica LU (2025) STVM23 20251
Department of Political Science
Abstract
The thesis examines how the emergence of the Russian shadow fleet, a network of ships circumventing international sanctions on Russian oil, has influenced the European Union’s (EU) maritime security integration from when the Russian war on Ukraine started in 2022 until May of 2025. Using neofunctionalist theory as a framework, the study conceptualizes this development as a case of crisis-driven integration by analyzing how economic sanctions triggered spillover effects into maritime security. A qualitative single-case study design and a directed content analysis examined three forms of spillover: functional, political, and cultivated, in order to trace the EU’s policy responses. The results show how sanctions led to unintended security... (More)
The thesis examines how the emergence of the Russian shadow fleet, a network of ships circumventing international sanctions on Russian oil, has influenced the European Union’s (EU) maritime security integration from when the Russian war on Ukraine started in 2022 until May of 2025. Using neofunctionalist theory as a framework, the study conceptualizes this development as a case of crisis-driven integration by analyzing how economic sanctions triggered spillover effects into maritime security. A qualitative single-case study design and a directed content analysis examined three forms of spillover: functional, political, and cultivated, in order to trace the EU’s policy responses. The results show how sanctions led to unintended security consequences, requiring increased maritime surveillance, port state control, and legislative action at the national and EU level. Political spillover is visible when support shifts toward common and supranational solutions. The European Commission had a key role in setting the agenda and pushing for further integration in the maritime security policy area. While progress is being made, the EU continues to face challenges such as fragmentation in enforcement and national interests diverging or shifting. The thesis contributes to policy and theory by illustrating how crises can accelerate supranational integration in security domains traditionally resistant to EU-level governance, such as maritime security. (Less)
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author
Boonsom, Jessica LU
supervisor
organization
course
STVM23 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Maritime Security, European Integration, Russian Shadow Fleet, Crisis-Driven Integration, Neofunctionalism
language
English
id
9189765
date added to LUP
2025-08-08 11:37:54
date last changed
2025-08-08 11:37:54
@misc{9189765,
  abstract     = {{The thesis examines how the emergence of the Russian shadow fleet, a network of ships circumventing international sanctions on Russian oil, has influenced the European Union’s (EU) maritime security integration from when the Russian war on Ukraine started in 2022 until May of 2025. Using neofunctionalist theory as a framework, the study conceptualizes this development as a case of crisis-driven integration by analyzing how economic sanctions triggered spillover effects into maritime security. A qualitative single-case study design and a directed content analysis examined three forms of spillover: functional, political, and cultivated, in order to trace the EU’s policy responses. The results show how sanctions led to unintended security consequences, requiring increased maritime surveillance, port state control, and legislative action at the national and EU level. Political spillover is visible when support shifts toward common and supranational solutions. The European Commission had a key role in setting the agenda and pushing for further integration in the maritime security policy area. While progress is being made, the EU continues to face challenges such as fragmentation in enforcement and national interests diverging or shifting. The thesis contributes to policy and theory by illustrating how crises can accelerate supranational integration in security domains traditionally resistant to EU-level governance, such as maritime security.}},
  author       = {{Boonsom, Jessica}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Dark Waters Ahead: EU Maritime Security Integration in Response to the Russian Shadow Fleet}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}