The monitoring group of the Institute for Black Sea Strategic Studies published the results of its own monitoring of the sea exports of Russian crude oil to the EU countries in January 2023 in violation of the embargo in force since December 5, 2022.
Experts report that in January 2023, the actual volume of exports of Russian crude oil from the Black Sea ports to the EU countries under the embargo amounted to 1.27 million tons, and compared to December 2022, this sanctioned export increased by 25%, or by about 250 thousand tons. .
It is noted that Russian oil was illegally transported to 4 EU countries: Greece – 961 thousand tons, i.e. 75% of the total volume, Spain – 159 thousand tons, the Netherlands – 103.7 thousand tons, and Slovenia – 50 thousand tons.
Experts report that out of 12 tankers that transported Russian crude oil to the EU countries in January 2023, 8 tankers are owned and operated by companies registered in Greece, Denmark and Cyprus, the remaining 4 by companies registered in Turkey in the Marshall Islands and subsidiaries of “Sovcomflot”, registered in Dubai. It is obvious that these vessels, criminally exploited by the aggressor, have significant problems not only with insurance, but also with their technical condition, and in the event of an accident, the coastal ecosystems of the occupied Crimea will also suffer.
In February, we reported on the recent sinking of the “Seamark” off the coast of Novorossiysk, operated through a similar scheme in Dubai.
And while it was not a tanker that sank then, Russian environmentalists themselves are now beginning to recognize such pollution risks for the Black Sea basin, including recent statements by Konstantin Zgurovsky, “Senior adviser to the WWF Russia sustainable marine fisheries program.”
