Sanctions on Russia

Carl Lee27 said:And honestly, it’s not even a secret at this point, though people love to act shocked when it comes up. It wouldn't be the first time either! Look, you could have a massive company like Shell buy up crude from Russia and then just blend it with oil from, say, Norway. Suddenly, that Russian oil makes up less than 50% of the total cargo, and magically, everything looks fine on paper.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/busin...fb4_story.html

THAT'S JUST PURE GREED!

The folks running Shell are so loaded they have to find ways to fatten their bottom line, so now they're dodging sanctions under the table!!!!

🙂Can't post above here

ironpuma29 said:THAT'S JUST PURE GREED!

The folks running Shell are so loaded they have to find ways to fatten their bottom line, so now they're dodging sanctions under the table!!!!

🙂Can't post above here

Technically speaking, they aren't actually breaking any rules since there aren't direct sanctions on oil right now. It's more about the PR nightmare—it looks terrible, so they either steer clear entirely or just sneakily pick up smaller amounts through third-party middlemen to keep things quiet.

hollowdriver13 said:Technically speaking, they aren't actually breaking any rules since there aren't direct sanctions on oil right now. It's more about the PR nightmare—it looks terrible, so they either steer clear entirely or just sneakily pick up smaller amounts through third-party middlemen to keep things quiet.

Technically, I'm not a thief if they can't prove the crime...

Look, Russia has been playing both sides for ages, selling Iranian oil under their own flag just to help them dodge sanctions. At the end of the day, oil always finds a buyer—it’s just like cocaine, honestly 🤷‍♂️. But here’s the kicker: they’re selling it at a fraction of the price and volume now, and I wouldn't be surprised if Iran eventually decides to walk away from the whole deal altogether. 🤷‍♂️

hollowdriver13 said:It’s getting to the point where we might actually see Asia trading oil with Russia using rubles, which would basically be the final nail in the coffin for the petrodollar.
I mean, look at the Rosneft auction for oil priced in rubles—literally zero buyers showed up.

The issue is simple: if you don't pay for oil in petrodollars, you might wake up the next morning to find an American aircraft carrier sitting off your coast, ready to introduce some "democracy."
It’s hardly surprising there were zero bidders. 😁

So, I was just reading that Germany is finally cutting back on their Russian oil imports—they’re down to about 10% right now, but according to Robert Habeck, they’re planning to phase them out entirely very soon. And when he says "soon," we aren't talking months or years here, we're talking days! It basically means the whole embargo is hanging by a thread, waiting on whether Viktor Orbán decides to play ball or not.
https://www.reuters.com/business/ene...ys-2022-04-26/

It is truly unfortunate how the Russian people have become so conditioned to view themselves as perpetual victims, even among those with higher education. One can only wonder what kind of history they are being taught in their schools; perhaps they are led to believe that Joseph Stalin was justified when he orchestrated the slaughter of millions of Russians.

Robert Habeck, the German Minister of Economic Affairs, just announced that within "the coming days," Germany will finally break its dependence on Russian oil.
Faster than anyone anticipated, wouldn't you say?

At the exact same time, Gazprom has officially cut off gas supplies to Poland.

Look, I’m certainly no economic expert, but isn't it obvious what this means? These two developments combined represent a massive, immediate hit to the cash reserves sitting in Moscow's coffers.

lp

So, Poland and Bulgaria are the first ones to go without the gas. I’m not entirely sure how much this actually hits Russia in terms of raw revenue from those two specific countries, but we'll just have to wait and see. Regardless, we’re looking at a whole new level here; the economic escalation ladder is definitely moving up a notch.

velvetbadger11 said:It is truly unfortunate how the Russian people have become so conditioned to view themselves as perpetual victims, even among those with higher education. One can only wonder what kind of history they are being taught in their schools; perhaps they are led to believe that Joseph Stalin was justified when he orchestrated the slaughter of millions of Russians.

The real kicker is that information spreads way faster today than back in Stalin's day, and those educated types can just pack up and find work anywhere else.

Christian Torres3 said:The real kicker is that information spreads way faster today than back in Stalin's day, and those educated types can just pack up and find work anywhere else.

They’re already scouting in Georgia and Finland, and for some—perhaps many—this will serve as a stepping stone for what comes next.

Paul Anderson7 said:So, Poland and Bulgaria are the first ones to go without the gas. I’m not entirely sure how much this actually hits Russia in terms of raw revenue from those two specific countries, but we'll just have to wait and see. Regardless, we’re looking at a whole new level here; the economic escalation ladder is definitely moving up a notch.

Why were Poland and Bulgaria the ones to get the "notice" instead of, say, Germany or Austria?

Because Poland and Bulgaria are considered "hostile nations."

Michael Ortiz68 said:Why were Poland and Bulgaria the ones to get the "notice" instead of, say, Germany or Austria?

Because it’s much easier to pick on the "small" customers than to risk upsetting the big ones.....

ExxonMobil’s exports to the European Union—man, this is getting intense. The real moment of truth is coming up in May, because that's when we'll finally see who actually caves and starts paying in rubles, especially looking at Germany. It feels like Russia just fired off a massive warning shot at everyone. And get this, Austria has already stepped up and announced they aren't going to play along with the ruble payments.
btw, gas is still flowing through Bulgaria and Mexicans are getting their share too
https://twitter.com/thierry_bros/sta...65653340250119

So, it looks like Germany is going to have to import oil for those refineries out east via Gdansk, since they used to rely on that northern branch of the Druzhba pipeline
https://twitter.com/jsuedekum/status...51293096038400

Now DJI is pulling out of Ukraine, but they're also exiting Russia. It’s classic Chinese diplomacy, isn't it? Just trying to figure out how to not offend the Russians by basically cutting ties with everyone at once
View on twitter

Michael Ortiz68 said:They’re already scouting in Georgia and Finland, and for some—perhaps many—this will serve as a stepping stone for what comes next.

That is, unless they get banned just because they happen to be Russian.

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/26/t...ntl/index.html

While individual players from Russia and Belarus are allowed to compete on the ATP and WTA Tours as neutrals, this is the first time they have been prohibited from competing in an elite tennis event.
...
Talks between Wimbledon and the UK government are ongoing about whether Russian and Belarusian support staff and coaches will be permitted at the tournament.

So basically, they wouldn't just kick out the athletes, but the coaches and all the support staff too, simply because their passports say "guilty."

Carl Lee27 said:ExxonMobil’s exports to the European Union—man, this is getting intense. The real moment of truth is coming up in May, because that's when we'll finally see who actually caves and starts paying in rubles, especially looking at Germany. It feels like Russia just fired off a massive warning shot at everyone. And get this, Austria has already stepped up and announced they aren't going to play along with the ruble payments.
btw, gas is still flowing through Bulgaria and Mexicans are getting their share too
https://twitter.com/thierry_bros/sta...65653340250119

So, it looks like Germany is going to have to import oil for those refineries out east via Gdansk, since they used to rely on that northern branch of the Druzhba pipeline
https://twitter.com/jsuedekum/status...51293096038400

Now DJI is pulling out of Ukraine, but they're also exiting Russia. It’s classic Chinese diplomacy, isn't it? Just trying to figure out how to not offend the Russians by basically cutting ties with everyone at once
View on twitter

Actually, they aren't receiving it,
if you consider that last year they finally saw those first shipments heading toward Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania, Canada, and Mexico...

fadedranger162 said:That is, unless they get banned just because they happen to be Russian.

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/04/26/t...ntl/index.html

While individual players from Russia and Belarus are allowed to compete on the ATP and WTA Tours as neutrals, this is the first time they have been prohibited from competing in an elite tennis event.
...
Talks between Wimbledon and the UK government are ongoing about whether Russian and Belarusian support staff and coaches will be permitted at the tournament.

So basically, they wouldn't just kick out the athletes, but the coaches and all the support staff too, simply because their passports say "guilty."

No one is going to stop them. They drive economic growth in Western nations.

The US, Canada, the UK, Australia, and Finland are already saturated with Russian engineers, programmers, and scientists. This war is simply accelerating that trend, creating a win-win scenario where Western countries benefit from the talent and Russian experts get an exit strategy. That’s exactly why they’re leaving.

The Austrians folded almost immediately after yesterday's gas cutoff to Poland and Bulgaria. It looks like the Germans already made their peace with the terms.

Russian Energy giant Gazprom on Wednesday halted gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland for failing to pay for gas in roubles. Nehammer Said They Had declined to Use The Payment system through Gazprombank that Austria, Germany and others have adopted.

https://www.reuters.com/business/ene...es-2022-04-27/

https://apa.az/en/europe/austria-agr...-rubles-374600

steelfox98 said:The Austrians folded almost immediately after yesterday's gas cutoff to Poland and Bulgaria. It looks like the Germans already made their peace with the terms.

Russian Energy giant Gazprom on Wednesday halted gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland for failing to pay for gas in roubles. Nehammer Said They Had declined to Use The Payment system through Gazprombank that Austria, Germany and others have adopted.

https://www.reuters.com/business/ene...es-2022-04-27/

https://apa.az/en/europe/austria-agr...-rubles-374600

https://twitter.com/karlnehammer/sta...36100375601152

The Austrian Chancellor actually chimed in to say that's not true—apparently, it’s just fake news meant to stir up trouble.
But man, you guys sure were eager to jump on any "win" for that big-time chess player and his Asterix crew.

So, how's that business selling oil for rubles in Asia going?

https://www.euractiv.com/section/pol...n-oil-imports/

And how's the oil sales over to ExxonMobil looking?