On the occasion of the second anniversary of the war in Ukraine and in response to the death of imprisoned opposition politician Alexei Navalny, EU representatives agreed on the thirteenth package of sanctions against Russia.
The list of people, companies or institutions that are to be directly or indirectly involved in supporting the aggressor has been extended by 200 more. In addition to the Russian entities, four Chinese companies and one Indian company are now on the list, according to the Czech Press Agency. The reason for this is that they are said to be helping the Kremlin to circumvent previously adopted measures preventing the purchase of military technology. These are companies producing so-called dual-use products, in particular drones.
The US is also preparing a major new package of sanctions. One day, we may learn whether such measures have worked (in the case of Iran, they have not), but from time to time, the hard reality comes knocking on the door of the enthusiastic politicians who approve them, in the form of reports about how Russian companies have found a back door and how Western companies are trading with them briskly and without scruples. Apparently they follow the famous economist Milton Friedman's motto: The business of business is the business.
New evidence of sanctions being circumvented has been brought to light by CNN reporters, about which it cannot be said what Prime Minister Petr Fiala said about striking Czech farmers. This television, which is probably not supported by the Kremlin, claims that Russia has never been richer - thanks to its strategic partner in the US. We also learn that Russia has unprecedented amounts of cash at its disposal - thanks to Western sanctions. Where is this cash coming from? From India, for example, but also from the US. CNN cites a new analysis by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) that India (that's the strategic partner of the United States) bought $37 billion worth of Russian oil last year, the derivatives of which it then exported, for example, for more than a billion dollars to the US. India now buys 13 times more Russian oil than it did before the invasion. These deals are not subject to sanctions. In addition, a shadow fleet of tankers, flying the flags of various countries, runs between India and Russia. This has been set up with the help of the Kremlin to disguise with whom and how Russian oil producers do business. This fleet alone made 588 trips between the two countries last year.
Ištván Léko, LN 22.2.2024
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