Commodities traders are helping to fund Russia's brutal war in Ukraine: Here's how
By jdheyes // 2022-08-15
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Western sanctions on Russia following its late February invasion of Ukraine have done absolutely nothing except harm Western economies and in fact, countries in the West are essentially funding Moscow's ongoing brutal war, according to a report published this week. OilPrice.com reports that "despite a plethora of sanctions and boycotts, Russia has managed to export nearly a billion dollars worth of fossil fuels per day since its invasion of Ukraine," thanks to commodities traders in countries like Switzerland, Singapore and Dubai, where they serve as middlemen for countries that are snapping up heavily discounted Russian crude. Even as Joe Biden and idiot Democrats reversed U.S. energy independence achieved by the real president, Donald Trump, the vast majority of the world continues to power their economies on cheap, plentiful fossil fuels, and at negligible 'harm' to the planet. As such, Russia's vast energy sector is thriving while countries in Europe that have sanctioned Russian energy are looking at running short of supplies during the fast-approaching and very cold winter, thanks also in large part to foolish overreliance on inefficient "green" energy that cannot replace reliable fossil fuels. Over the course of the first 100 days of the war, Russia has managed to rake in close to $100 billion in oil sales alone and in fact, higher crude and fuel prices caused by the West "have allowed Russian oil and gas revenues to climb even after the sanctions forced export volumes to dip," OilPrice.com reports. "Ultimately, there is no shortage of willing buyers lining up for cheap Russian Urals, nor is there a dearth of middlemen connecting them with Russian energy companies," the site's report continued. "Lurking behind the scenes are Switzerland's giant trading houses Vitol, Glencore and Gunvor as well as Singapore's Trafigura, all of which have continued lifting large volumes of Russian crude and products, including diesel, amid wide-ranging Western Sanctions on Russia," the report adds. While Vitol officials have pledged to stop purchasing Russian oil by year's end, that is still months away and that pledge could change depending on market conditions. And while Trafigura vowed to cease purchases of crude oil from Russia's state-owned Rosneft by mid-May, the trader is still free to purchase Russian crude from other suppliers. And Glencore officials said they would not make any "new" trading deals with Moscow, but so far the trader hasn't had any issues maintaining current deals. At the same time, India and China -- both economies of which are reliant on fossil fuels as they grow and mature -- are also making up for most of Russia's lost energy markets. New Dehli has significantly increased its purchases of Russian crude, OilPrice.com noted: India has never been a big buyer of Russian crude despite having to import 80% of its needs. In a typical year, India imports just 2-5% of its crude from Russia, roughly the same proportion as the United States did before it announced a 100% ban on Russian energy commodities. Indeed, India imported only 12 million barrels of Russian crude in 2021, with the majority of its oil sourced from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Nigeria. But back in May, reports emerged of a "significant uptick" in Russian oil deliveries bound for India. According to a Bloomberg report, India spent some $5.1 billion on Russian oil, gas and coal in the first three months following Moscow's invasion, an amount that exceeds five times the value of just a year ago, though China, by far, is the largest buyer of Russian oil. It about money, really: International energy monitors have noted that Russia is selling crude at major discounts. "Today, the Government of India's motivations are economic, not political. India will always look for a deal in their oil import strategy. It's hard not to take a 20% discount on crude when you import 80-85% of your oil, particularly on the heels of the pandemic and global growth slowdown," Samir N. Kapadia, head of trade at government relations consulting firm Vogel Group, told CNBC, according to OilPrice.com. Democrats and our dementia president, whose administration is being run by Barack Obama, are purposely tanking our fossil fuel industry because they know our economy will follow. And you can't hook tens of millions of Americans on government aid without tanking the economy. Sources include: OilPrice.com News18.com
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