On top of that they are paying Russia in its currency to keep their factories running. If they (developed countries) were sincere with the people of Ukraine, they should have stopped buying Russian energy products.
According to reports, European Union (EU) leaders on May 30,
2022 agreed to a partial ban on Russian oil imports that temporarily excludes
pipeline deliveries, in a diplomatic escalation against Moscow for its invasion
of Ukraine in late February this year.
"Tonight, the European Council agreed a sixth package
of sanctions. Concretely, it will allow a ban on oil imports from Russia with a
temporary exception for imports delivered by pipeline," European Council President
Charles Michel said.
He added that 75% of Russian oil imports will be immediately
affected, rising to 90% of Russian oil purchases by the end of the year.
The measure will exert "maximum pressure on Russia to
end the war", and includes provisions to exclude Russia's largest bank
Sberbank from the Swift international payment system and to ban three Russian
broadcast providers, Michel said.
The partial oil embargo emerges after weeks of negotiations
within the EU bloc and makes a critical concession to Hungary, which has
previously opposed a full ban at the alleged cost to its national energy
security.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on May 30, 2022 had
pushed the EU coalition for further compromises.
"Leaving out the pipeline [from the embargo] is a good
approach, but in the case of an accident with the pipeline through Ukraine we
have to have the right to get Russian oil from other sources," Orban said.
The partial ban will further diminish Russia's dwindling export
outlets. Several European buyers are already shunning Russian crude supplies as
a result of self-sanctioning or the financial sanctions already in place.
Russian production has already fallen by a sharp 870,000 barrels per day (bpd)
from the previous month to 9.13 million bpd in April, Argus estimates.
The announcement of the EU sanctions, combined with easing
Covid-19 restrictions in China, helped send Brent crude futures to a fresh
two-month high above US$122/barrel in Asian trade. The front-month Ice July
Brent contract rose as high as US$122.43 at 9.01:30 GMT, up by 0.8% from the close
on May 30, 2022.
