CCP Ignores International Sanctions To Help Russia Export Crude Oil With Its Supertanker

Foreign media disclosed on January 13th that Western sanctions against Russia, as well as the G7’s imposition of a $60 cap on the price of imported Russian crude oil, have significantly limited Russia’s ability to finance the war with energy revenues and made it difficult for Russia to use Western transportation services and insurance.

In response, Moscow quickly shifted its crude oil exports from Europe to Asia while looking for ships that could assist in exporting crude oil. According to trade sources and ship tracking platform data, from December 22nd last year to January 23rd this year, at least four Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) mega-tankers have been assisting Russia in transporting crude oil from the Urals to China and another tanker is transporting Russian crude oil to India.

The top executive of a CCP-owned company who involved in the crude oil shipment estimated that a total of 18 CCP’s mega tankers and another 16 Aframax tankers will be used to transport Russian crude oil this year, which will amount to 15 million tons in a year, or about 10 percent of Urals crude oil exports. So far, the Russian ministries of Energy and Transport have declined to comment and the Chinese Foreign Ministry has not responded to the matter.