The captain of a Russian shadow fleet oil tanker, intercepted by Royal Marine Commandos in the English Channel on Sunday, has been charged with violating sanctions, according to the National Crime Agency.
Ajay Pant, a 38-year-old Indian national, is scheduled to appear at Southampton Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.
Twenty-four crew members remain on board the vessel, the MV Smyrtos, which is being detained off the coast of Weymouth.
The NCA stated that the ship's captain has been charged with "breaching Reg 46Z9B Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 by directly or indirectly supplying or delivering by ship prohibited oil or oil products from Russia to a third country."
Sunday's six-hour operation, which involved commandos fast-roping from a helicopter onto the tanker and was backed by the Royal Air Force, marked the first such mission carried out by UK armed forces.
Earlier on Monday, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander issued an order formally barring the MV Smyrtos from leaving the UK.
Russia employs hundreds of oil tankers—referred to as its "shadow fleet"—which have been sanctioned by the UK and other Western nations due to its invasion of Ukraine.
More than 500 such ships have been sanctioned by the UK, and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced in March that British armed forces were "now able to board sanctioned vessels that are passing through our waters."
Speaking in the Commons on Monday, Defence Secretary Dan Jarvis stated that the operation sent "a clear signal to Russia that the UK and its allies can and will act against the Russian war machine."
He continued: "Sanctioned oil is bankrolling Putin's brutal war in Ukraine. Every barrel sold helps fund the missiles and drones used to kill Ukrainians in their homes, destroy their infrastructure, and break their will."
Jarvis informed the Commons that Britain "does not seek escalation, but we will always take necessary steps to enforce UK sanctions."
He also noted that the crew of the intercepted vessel, who are Georgian and Indian nationals, were "assisting the NCA."