Russia: Europe will suffer without Russian oil

MOSCOW-Russia "will not accept" a price cap on its oil and is analyzing how to respond, the Kremlin reported in comments reported Saturday, in response to an agreement by Western powers to limit a key source of funding for the war in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had made preparations for the Group of Seven nations, the European Union and Australia to announce a price ceiling, Russia’s state news agency TASS reported. “We will not accept this limit. Russia will conduct a quick analysis of the agreement and then respond, RIA reported. Russia has repeatedly said it will not supply oil to countries that implement the limit, a position reiterated Saturday by Mikhail Ulyanov, Moscow’s ambassador to international organizations in Vienna, in social media posts. “Starting this year, Europe will live without Russian oil,” he stressed.

The G7 price cap will allow non-EU countries to continue importing Russian crude by sea, but it will prohibit shipping, insurance and reinsurance companies from moving cargoes of Russian crude around the world unless it is sold for less than $60. This could complicate the shipment of Russian crude priced above the cap, even to countries that are not part of the agreement.  “Russia is ready to face new challenges and growing foreign pressures together with China,” Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishoustin told his Chinese counterpart Li Keqiang on Monday, December 5.

According to the Fars news agency, the Russian Prime Minister said: “Our countries have the same and similar approach to many issues. We both support the emergence of a multipolar order in international relations. We are ready to face together the emerging challenges and the increasing foreign pressures. The Russian statesman emphasized the use of national currencies for bilateral trade activities; “this interaction now has strategic importance,” he added.

Mikhail Mishutin denounced the use of political pressure and illegitimate economic sanctions by some Western states to impose their rules of the game without taking into account the interests of others, saying that “these efforts are certainly doomed to failure. “We are convinced that against the backdrop of new geopolitical realities in the world, the global and strategic partnership between Moscow and Beijing will be able to unleash more innovative potential than ever,” he also said.

While the G7 (informal grouping of seven advanced economies of the world, namely Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union) claims to agree on a “cap on oil prices to reduce Russia’s revenues, while preserving the stability of global energy markets”, the Kremlin says it reserves the right to respond.

According to AFP, the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, assured Monday that the cap on Russian oil prices decided by Western countries would have “no impact” on the operation conducted by Moscow in Ukraine. “On the other hand, these measures will undoubtedly have an impact on the stability of the global energy market (…). This is a step towards their destabilization,” warned Dmitry Peskov, adding that Moscow was “preparing” retaliatory measures.

At a press briefing in the Kremlin, Peskov referred to the sanctions imposed by the Western bloc against his country. “The sanctions established against Russia will clearly harm the economies of European countries including Germany; and it is difficult not to recognize this,” said the spokesman for Vladimir Putin. Regarding the statements of French President Emmanuel Macron that Russia’s security “fears” must be taken into account, Peskov reacted, saying: “we do not see in it a sign of change of mind of Paris.” Analysis of Emmanuel Macron’s statements with Xavier Dupret, Belgian economist