The Icelandic Coast Guard is monitoring the movements of an oil tanker that entered Iceland’s southeastern exclusive economic zone shortly after 4 a.m. last night.

The ship’s crew is suspected of violating sanctions against Russia by transporting oil from Iran to Russia.

Just inside the jurisdiction

In a response to mbl.is, Ásgeir Erlendsson , spokesperson for the Coast Guard, said the vessel is currently located just inside the southeastern limits of Iceland’s jurisdiction and is sailing in international waters for navigational purposes. The ship is en route from South America.

“The Icelandic Coast Guard has been monitoring the movements of this vessel, as with other ships that appear in the Coast Guard’s surveillance systems in the waters around Iceland,” Erlendsson said.

According to the Coast Guard, the ship is not carrying any oil cargo. The agency also says it has no information indicating that Russian naval vessels are present in the area.

The Russian oil tanker Bella 1, now named Marinera, is located roughly midway between Iceland and the British Isles. Russia has dispatched a submarine and several warships to escort it, while the U.S. Coast Guard attempted to board the vessel in the Caribbean in December. Photo/VesselFinder/Arman Elmendorp

Accused of violating sanctions

The BBC reports that Russia has sent a warship and a submarine to meet the vessel, and that the United States is also tracking it.

The ship, which has previously transported crude oil from Venezuela, says it is not carrying any oil on this voyage.

The vessel has been accused of breaching U.S. sanctions by transporting Iranian oil to Russia. It has changed its name from Bella 1 to