The United States on Friday sanctioned 14 tankers from a “ghost fleet” used by Moscow to circumvent the limit imposed by Western countries on the price of Russian oil, on the eve of the second anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine. The sanctions announced in a US Treasury statement target Russian national shipping company Sovcomflot, giving it 45 days to offload oil or other cargo from the 14 vessels. This “ghost fleet” allowed Russia to reduce the impact on its income of the oil price limitation mechanism, implemented by a coalition of Western countries.
The countries of a coalition that brings together the G7, the European Union (EU) and Australia have implemented, since December 2022, a system to limit Russian oil prices. Insurers and reinsurers are prohibited from covering shipping of Russian oil to the countries of this coalition unless it is sold at a price below the ceiling. This had the effect of reducing the revenue Russia earned in 2023 from the export of oil and oil products by a third, compared to 2022, according to the coalition countries.
“Limit Kremlin profits and promote stability in energy markets”
Targeting this shadow fleet “forces Russia to choose between using coalition services to ship its oil below the price cap” or doing so “through the shadow fleet and facing rising costs and stricter enforcement.” of sanctions by Western authorities,” the Treasury official explained. “The Russian oil price cap continues to serve its dual purpose: limiting Kremlin profits while promoting stability in energy markets,” said U.S. Treasury Undersecretary Wally Adeyemo, quoted in the statement.
A Treasury official clarified that “the G7 countries represent 90% of the global services market.” These additional sanctions are in addition to those announced today by the Biden administration, which affected more than 500 individuals and organizations, the largest round of sanctions since the start of the war in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
Source: BFM TV
