Russia's warships are now assigned to escort merchant tankers across European waters, adding pressure to its surface fleet and intensifying an already serious force-generation challenge, a NATO military official told Business Insider.

The Russian Navy contends with multiple difficulties such as sustainment, maintenance, and overall fleet readiness. Ukraine has struck several of its warships in the Black Sea, and Moscow has lost its former strong military foothold at a key Syrian port.

These escort duties are compounding Russia's difficulties, the NATO official noted while speaking anonymously about sensitive military matters.

The official reported that allied navies have boarded about a dozen vessels tied to Russia's shadow fleet over the past year. This fleet consists of hundreds of ships that transport oil to bypass sanctions on Moscow's energy sales.

Russia has dispatched warships to accompany shadow fleet tankers through the English Channel, the Baltic Sea, and around Africa, thinning out its surface fleet, the official said. Some vessels have operated outside their usual zones.

The escorts have taxed Russia's sustainment resources, requiring warships to refuel or gain support at sea from repair ships instead of proper oilers, the official explained. Such close maneuvers between non-specialized vessels are considered highly risky.

The official noted that for the first time in years no Russian warships are present in the Mediterranean, signaling Moscow's challenges. Only one Russian-flagged commercial dredge remains at Egypt's Port of Alexandria.

US Lt. Cdr. Tim Pietrack, a spokesperson for NATO's Allied Maritime Command, confirmed to Business Insider that the command observes a continuing pattern of Russian Navy ships escorting merchant vessels around Europe, including the Mediterranean, Baltic, and North seas.

Pietrack stated that escort duties consume valuable sea time for the Russian Navy and hinder its capacity to prepare naval forces for other tasks.

He added that allies monitor Russian Navy operations in every area of the Euro-Atlantic region.

Russia's defense ministry and its US embassy did not reply to requests for comment on the force-generation concerns.

Russia's navy has long faced strain from limits in shipbuilding, modernization, redeployment, maintenance, and operational reach.

Recent setbacks have increased pressure on the surface fleet.

Since 2022 Ukraine has used naval drones and anti-ship missiles to damage or destroy dozens of Russian warships and vessels in the Black Sea. This effort has pushed Moscow to shift much of its fleet elsewhere in the region.

In late 2024, after Syrian rebels overthrew the Assad government, Russia could no longer sustain a robust naval presence at the Tartus port on the Mediterranean coast.

Western officials informed Business Insider last year that these events have stretched the Russian Navy, and the latest NATO assessment indicates the strain has grown since then.

Russia continues to emphasize its submarines over surface warships. It maintains one of the largest submarine fleets worldwide, with roughly 64 active boats.

Western military officials have highlighted the Russian submarine activity in the Arctic and North Atlantic, prompting NATO to increase its presence in the High North for better tracking.