China News Service, Beijing, April 27 (Zhang Aolin) Since the outbreak of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the United States and many European countries have imposed sanctions on Russia in various fields. Recently, the European Commission also plans to impose an oil embargo on Russia.

Although the sanctions on the surface are loud, the US "Wall Street Journal" recently revealed that the amount of oil imported by EU member states from Russia has not decreased but increased, and the means of transportation are also extremely concealed. The report said, "An opaque oil market is forming." .

Oil shipments from Russian ports to EU member states have increased markedly so far in April from March, data from tanker tracker TankerTrackers showed.

Image source: Screenshot of the US "Wall Street Journal" report

While shouting sanctions, while increasing imports

　　The British "Times" quoted European Commission Executive Vice President Dombrovskis as saying on the 25th that the EU is considering a "some form of oil embargo" against Russia.

　　He said the exact details of the oil sanctions had not yet been agreed, but could include the option of phasing out Russian oil.

　　On the other hand, the US "Wall Street Journal" recently wrote an article pointing out that the amount of oil shipped from Russia to many European countries has not decreased but increased.

　　The article said that EU member states have historically been the largest buyers of Russian crude oil.

Russia’s oil exports to the EU fell to an average of 1.3 million barrels per day in March after the conflict broke out.

But oil shipments from Russian ports to EU member states have risen to an average of 1.6 million barrels per day so far in April, according to tanker tracker TankerTrackers.

　　Russia's oil exports to Romania, Estonia, Greece and Bulgaria more than doubled in April from the daily average in March, while exports to the Netherlands and Finland, Europe's top buyers, also rose sharply.

Data map: An oil field in the Siberia region of Russia.

"Ancient Practice"

　　In addition, the article said that an opaque market is forming, making it difficult to trace the origin of oil.

　　After the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, European countries, on the one hand, intend to isolate Russia, on the other hand, do not want to bring pain to their own economies by pushing up energy prices. At the same time, oil buyers are also worried that oil trade with Russia will bring reputational risks. So oil from Russian ports is increasingly being shipped to "unknown destinations".

　　According to TankerTrackers, more than 11.1 million barrels of oil have been loaded into tankers with no planned routes since April, and before the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, almost zero oil was shipped to unknown destinations.

　　The Wall Street Journal, citing analysts and traders, said the use of the "unknown destination" label meant the oil would be offloaded on larger ships at sea.

In this way, Russian crude oil can be mixed with the original cargo on board, obscuring the source of crude oil.

　　The report pointed out that this is an old practice, and sanctioned countries such as Iran and Venezuela have also used this method to export crude oil.

Data map: After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, European oil prices continued to rise.

The picture shows a vehicle passing a gas station in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, a city in southwestern France, on March 3.

What would Europe be without Russian oil?

　　The reason why this happens, the "Wall Street Journal" analyzed, is that it is not possible to exclude Russia's oil and natural gas from the global economy overnight, and this process will be accompanied by severe pain.

　　The report quoted UBS commodities analyst Stanovo as saying: "If the European Union sanctioned Russian oil comprehensively, it would be like saying that you cut your wages by 40% tomorrow, but you still have to live as usual, as if nothing happened."

"At the same time, there are huge discounts on Russian oil in the market, and some people will find this environment very profitable," he added.

　　CBS also published an article titled "What If Europe Doesn't Buy Russian Oil?"

"The article pointed out that economists analyzed that cutting off Russia's oil and gas may lead to a recession in Europe.

　　In theory, Europe could replace Russian oil with oil from places such as the Middle East, the United States and Latin America, but it will take time for global markets to adjust, the article said.

　　The article also quoted analysts from the European Bruegel think tank as saying that if Russian oil is no longer imported, European countries should be prepared to take measures to reduce fuel use, such as free public transportation and encouraging car sharing.

If those measures don't work, tougher measures are needed, citing what Germany did during the 1973 OPEC oil embargo: enforcing car-free Sundays.