The sanctions are insufficient, because oil products of Russian origin still flow to Europe through middlemen, says Professor Kari Liuhto.
Oil products of Russian origin continue to flow to Europe in large quantities, even though the EU has tried to curb Russia’s income from oil in many ways.
A professor familiar with the Russian economy Kari Liuhto calls the situation “a peculiar Russian oil roulette”.
India, which has become Europe’s largest supplier of petroleum products, plays a key role in the situation.
The pattern goes so that Russia first transports crude oil to India. Next, it refines the oil in its own oil refinery in India. In the end, oil products will be brought to the EU and the United States, Liuhto told A-studio on Wednesday.
– We are deceiving ourselves a bit. There is a certain kind of double moralism here. We know what it’s about. Here, sanctions should also be clearly imposed on Indian oil terminals, so that we no longer buy oil from India.
Liuhto is currently working as a professor of intelligence research at the National Defense University and the University of Turku School of Economics.
Although the EU has imposed sanctions on Russia, loopholes have remained in them. It is possible for EU countries to buy oil products of Russian origin, such as fuel, as long as they have been processed in third countries, wrote online magazine Politico last month.
Russia and India have been strengthening their relations for a long time. Very recently, the two countries signed a historic agreement on the supply of oil from Russia to India, the news agency reported Reuters last month.
According to Reuters, the contract is worth $13 billion a year at current prices.
According to Liuhto, the solution to the difficult situation could be found in new sanctions.
– We should also impose sanctions on those European oil terminals in the EU that accept possible original Russian oil.
Watch all of Wednesday’s A-studio at Areena.