London seized a tanker, Moscow hit back with words - and in the whole show, nobody is talking about what's actually happening at home. British PM Keir Starmer announced he had ordered the armed forces to intercept an oil tanker from the so-called Russian „shadow fleet" as it passed through the English Channel. The operation, he claims, was a success and represented „another blow to Russia."

Moscow's reply didn't lag, and it was sharp. Kirill Dmitriev, the Russian president's special envoy for investment, attacked Starmer on X with words that land exactly where it hurts: that instead of „intercepting his own problems," the PM turned the British public toward an external enemy to distract it from the domestic crisis. Diplomatic - no. Accurate - perhaps more than London would like to admit.

The „shadow fleet" is a network of ships the West claims help Russia bypass sanctions and keep exporting oil. For London, the Channel operation is part of a broader strategy of pressure on Russian energy logistics. For Moscow, it's a political provocation and an attempt by the British government to cover up its domestic chaos with a fresh dose of conflict with Russia.

The Balkans know this game by heart. When the government is on fire at home, there's always an external enemy - real or invented - to turn the people's anger toward. The question isn't whether Starmer is right about the tanker; the question is why right now, and who benefits from moving the debate from London's streets to the open sea. When politics needs a spectacle, the ship is just a prop.