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Deliveries of Russian oil to three European countries via Ukraine have been halted after a bank transaction linked to sanctions against Moscow was rejected, the Russian shipping company announced on Tuesday.
In a statement, Transneft explains that its payment for the right of transit through Ukraine corresponding to the month of August, made on July 22, was denied on the 28th due to the entry into force of certain sanctions adopted against Moscow.
As a result, the The Ukrainian company UkrTransNafta “stopped providing services for the transportation of oil through the Ukrainian territory as of August 4″Transneft said.
These are deliveries via a branch of the Druzhba pipeline that passes through Ukraine and serves three landlocked European countries, Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
The supply to Poland and Germany, through another branch of the Druzhba that passes through Belarus, “proceed normally”Transneft stated.
Despite the Russian military offensive on Ukrainian territory since the end of February, Russian oil and gas continue to transit through Ukraine to the European Union (EU), where some countries are highly dependent on Russian hydrocarbons.
The EU adopted a progressive embargo on Russian oil in June, which sees an end to crude oil imports by ship within six months.
The supply through the Druzhba pipeline is authorized to continue “temporarily”, without a deadline, a concession obtained by the Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orban, who maintains good relations with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, with Hungary highly dependent on Russian oil.
Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, European countries have tried to reduce their energy dependence on Russia, accusing Moscow of using its exports in this sector as a “weapon of war”.
Russia has also significantly reduced gas supplies to Europe in recent weeks.
Source: Observadora
