Trump's sanctions put a third of Russia's oil exports at risk

Greek tanker companies, which transport about a third of Russian oil from Western ports, have begun to refuse to cooperate with Russian companies because of the US administration's sanctions Donald Trump. About writes The Moscow Times.

Previously, these shipowners exported 10-20 million barrels of Russian oil every month. At the end of October, their activity dropped to a minimum.

Currently, Urals oil is mainly transported by tankers of the so-called "shadow fleet" of the Russian Federation. As a result, freight rates have risen sharply: transportation of one shipment from Primorsk or Ust-Luga to Indian ports costs more than $8 million, and some companies raise the price to $10 million.

The reason for this was the imposition of US sanctions against the Russian companies Rosneft and Lukoil, which account for half of Russia's oil production and exports.

At the same time, the European Union added another 117 shadow fleet tankers to the blacklist as part of the 19th package of sanctions, bringing the total number to 558.

The Finnish CREA Center estimates that the "shadow fleet" transports about half of Russia's oil, the rest being transported by tankers owned by G7 countries or insured by Western insurers.

Experts note that the sanctions are making it harder to pay in US dollars. This is especially true for exports to India, as Russia has long been paying China in yuan and rubles.

• On October 22, Bessent announced a "significant strengthening" of the sanctions against Russia. The White House said they would not be directed against China.
• On the same day, the US Treasury Department imposed restrictions against Russia's Lukoil, Rosneft and dozens of subsidiaries.
• Presidential Commissioner for Sanctions Policy Vlasyuk said that due to sanctions against Rosneft and Lukoil could lose up to 70% of their oil exports to India and China.
• Zelenskyy says new US sanctions against Russian oil giants may reduce oil exports by 50%.