Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed strong concern about the US relaxation of sanctions on Russian crude oil and petroleum products.
Zelenskyy wrote in a social media post on Sunday that the “continued easing of sanctions against Russia…fuels the Russian leadership’s illusion that they can continue the war.”
He argued that more than 110 tankers from Moscow’s shadow fleet are currently at sea, carrying over 12 million tons of Russian oil.
The president warned that the oil can be sold for 10 billion dollars and the money “is directly converted into new strikes against Ukraine.”
The US Treasury Department announced on Friday that it was allowing countries to carry out transactions of Russian crude oil and petroleum products currently being transported at sea.
Washington had earlier re-imposed sanctions on the commodities after a waiver it issued in March expired in April. The waiver came as crude prices were soaring due to the conflict in the Middle East.
The latest sanctions relief has drawn opposition from senior European officials. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said now is not the time to relax sanctions against Russia.
French Finance Minister Roland Lescure also underscored that Russia must not be allowed to benefit from what is happening in Iran.
