EU probes scheme to re-label Russian oil in Turkey for European markets

Politico reported the information.

The investigation was initiated after Politico revealed that millions of barrels of Moscow fuel are likely to enter the EU after being rebranded in Turkey, violating the ban on Russian oil imports.

According to the report, millions of barrels of Russian oil have been imported to the EU through three Turkish ports over the past year, bringing Moscow up to €3 billion. The scheme is based on a loophole in sanctions that allows the import of "mixed" fuel if it is not labeled as Russian.

This incident underscores the effectiveness of Russia's methods of circumventing sanctions while retaining a significant portion of its energy export revenues, which account for about half of the country's state budget.

The outlet emphasized that the OLAF investigation is taking place amid deteriorating relations between the EU and Turkey, despite Ankara's steps to join the U.S. sanctions against Russia.

• Earlier, it was reported that the EU countries plan to resume discussions on strengthening economic sanctions against Russia in January 2025, when Poland takes over the presidency of the bloc.
• In addition, the waterways police in the German city of Kiel recently detained a ship carrying goods subject to EU sanctions that was heading to Russia.