The US continues to try to increase pressure on the Russian budget by cutting oil and gas revenues. To this end, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held talks with her Cypriot counterpart Konstantinos Petrides in order to convince the authorities of a European state to impose a ban on the transportation of Russian oil to third countries, but Petrides refused this proposal. Bloomberg writes about this, citing sources close to the negotiations on both sides.
The Cypriot side refused the US, arguing its position by the high demand for Russian energy resources in third countries, as well as the absence of such bans in other countries. The agency recalls that the original version of the sixth package of European Union sanctions against Russia involved a ban on the transportation of Russian oil to third countries, but the ban was lifted after lobbying from countries whose companies are highly dependent on this source of income – Greece, Malta and Cyprus. Tankers flying the flags of these three countries are the main conduits of Russian oil to third countries.
In addition to the issue of a transportation ban, Yellen and Petrides discussed another reduction mechanism – the introduction of a price ceiling for Russian energy resources, which is currently being discussed as part of the G7 summit, which is also attended by the head of the European Council Charles Michel and the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen . There is no clear description of the mechanism for introducing a cap on Russian oil yet, but sources say that it is proposed to influence the price with the help of tariffs for transportation and supply insurance.
Limiting Russia's income from oil and gas has become the main goal of countries that seek to influence the Russian authorities and stop the war in Ukraine. After the introduction of six packages of sanctions, the dependence of the Russian budget on oil and gas revenues has exceeded 40%, but the funds received by Moscow still give it the opportunity to continue the war. A sharp decline in oil and gas revenues is fraught with a financial catastrophe for Russia.