Thanks to the USA, Russian oil is still flowing. There is a reaction from the European Commission
The license exempting Russia from sanctions for the second time was issued by the US Treasury Department on Friday. This happened despite the earlier announcement by the head of this ministry, Scott Bessent, that the United States would not extend this exemption to Moscow.
The decision was published on the day when oil prices fell on global markets due to Iran's announcement of the opening of the Strait of Hormuz (as it later turned out, temporarily). Bessent justified the granting of the first license, which expired on April 11, with the desire to reduce oil prices. His ministry did not comment in any way on the issuance of a new exemption.
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Russian oil at market price
We are talking about the price limit that the G7 group of countries, including the United States and the European Union, has introduced for Russian oil transported by sea. This restriction was aimed at reducing the government's income in Moscow from the sale of oil and thus making it more difficult for it to finance the war in Ukraine. At the same time, it did not affect global gas flows.
The new license issued by the US suspends the maximum price for a barrel of Russian oil loaded on tankers before April 17. Therefore, it enables the sale of raw materials at market prices without penalties resulting from US sanctions.
The European Commission reacts to US decisions. “Russia should not benefit from the war”
—We understand that the exception the United States has re-granted is time-limited and applies to ships already at sea – said the EC spokesman on Monday, commenting on the decision of the US Treasury Department.
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– We are convinced that the oil price ceiling and sanctions against Russia remain justified and valid, also in the current situation of volatility on the oil markets, he noted. — The oil price ceiling has effectively limited Russia's oil export revenues while maintaining the stability of oil markets, Cardoso stressed.
— Russia should not benefit from the war with Iran, as we have said many times, he added.
Additional funds in Moscow's account
As the EC previously reported, since the beginning of the conflict in the Middle East, which the United States and Israel started on February 28 this year, attack on Iran, Russia earns an average of $150 million a day from additional revenues from oil sales. This makes it perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the US-Israeli war against Iran.
The EC proposed that, as part of the 20th sanctions package, the European Union should introduce a complete ban on the transport of Russian oil by sea. Such a measure will replace the current price cap, preventing EU entities from providing any services related to the transport of this raw material from Russia.
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Foreign ministers of EU countries will return to work on the 20th package towards Russia on Tuesday at their meeting in Luxembourg. So far, it has been blocked by Hungary. It was also questionable whether the EU would introduce such a ban on its own, without its G7 partners, including the United States.
