Banks in China, the UAE, and Turkey have boosted sanctions compliance leading to Russian oil firms facing months of delays in receiving payments, Reuters reported on March 27.
In some cases, money transfers to Moscow have been rejected entirely, several sources familiar with the matter told the outlet.
The U.S. in December introduced secondary sanctions to target foreign financial institutions that support Russia’s war effort, even if they do so unknowingly.
As a result, banks have begun demanding written guarantees from clients ensuring that payments will not benefit any person or entity named on Washington's Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs) List.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the payment problems when questioned by Reuters during a press conference call.
“Of course, unprecedented pressure from the U.S. and the EU on the People's Republic of China continues,” he said.
After the launch of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU and G7 countries imposed a $60-per-barrel price cap.
In addition to the imposition of the price cap, the U.S. and its allies applied a number of other measures in an attempt to force compliance, such as "cutting off access to Western services like shipping and insurance unless traders abided by the $60 limit."
Russia managed to ship out much of its crude above $60 by using a "ghost fleet" of mostly uninsured tankers, with the Financial Times reporting on Nov. 14 that the vast majority of Russian oil had been selling above the price cap.
The U.S. in December imposed secondary sanctions to try and curb Russian crude oil sales.
Igor Kossov
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