The French navy was Wednesday on board a tanker from Russia’s “shadow fleet” stationed off France, AFP journalists at the scene said, after data showed it was off the Danish coast last month during mysterious drone flights.

The Boracay, a Benin-flagged vessel blacklisted by the European Union for being part of Russia’s sanction-busting “shadow fleet” of ageing oil tankers, was stationed off Denmark from September 22 to 25, according to ship tracking data analysed by AFP.

Drones have been sighted across Denmark, including over military sites, since September 22, prompting brief closures at several airports and a ban on all civilian drone flights until Friday.

French military personnel were Wednesday on the deck of the tanker, now stationed off the coast of western France, AFP journalists

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