ISTANBUL, Dec 9 (Reuters) – Turkey emerged as the biggest setback to a global plan to cut off wartime Russian oil exports as the number of vehicles continued to rise. tanks waiting to exit the Black Sea through the Turkish straits on Friday.
Ankara has refused to scrap a new insurance inspection law that was implemented at the beginning of the month despite days of pressure from Western officials who are unhappy with the policy.
There are 28 oil tankers in the queue seeking to leave the Bosporus and Dardanelles straits, the Tribeca shipping office said on Friday.
The G7 rich nations, the European Union and Australia agreed to ban shipping service providers, such as insurers, from helping to transport Russian oil unless it is sold on the minimum wage, or cap, aimed at depriving Moscow of wartime funds.
Turkey’s maritime authority said it would continue to sit out its oil tankers without proper insurance letters.
Western insurers said they could not provide the documents required by Turkey because they would be subject to sanctions if it turned out that the oil products covered were sold at inflated prices. more than a hat.
Turkish authorities have said that if a ship that violates the sanctions has an accident, the damage may not be covered by the international oil fund.
“(There is) no question of us taking the risk that the insurance company will not meet its payment obligation,” he said, adding that Turkey and other countries are still in talks with insurance companies. .
He added that most of the ships waiting in the straits are EU ships, and a large part of the oil is destined for EU ports – a matter that worries Ankara’s Western partners.
The return of the ship is causing growing concern in the oil and shipping markets. Millions of barrels of oil a day move south from Russian ports through the Bosphorus and Turkey’s Dardanelles to the Mediterranean Sea.
KAZAKH oil
Most of the tankers waiting in the Bosphorus are carrying Kazakh oil and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday that the US administration saw no reason to subject those vessels to the new rules. Turkey.
Washington has no reason to believe that Russia was involved in Turkey’s decision to ban shipping, he added.
The European Commission said on Friday that the delays were not linked to the payment package and that Turkey could continue to verify insurance policies “as before”.
“We are therefore in contact with the Turkish authorities to seek clarification and work to resolve the situation,” a spokesman told Reuters.
Turkey has balanced its good relations with Russia and Ukraine since Moscow attacked its neighbor in February. He played a key role in the United Nations-backed agreement reached in July to export grain through Ukrainian Black Sea ports.
Relations between NATO allies Ankara and Washington have sometimes been rocky, however, last month Turkey renewed calls for the United States to stop supporting the Syrian Kurdish forces.
The Biden administration imposed sanctions on Thursday against prominent Turkish businessman Sitki Ayan and his network of firms, accusing him of working as an oil broker and money laundering agent for the Revolutionary Guard Corps. and Iran.
Daren Butler, Can Sezer, and Jonathan Saul report in London; Written by Noah Browning Written by Himani Sarkar, Clarence Fernandez, Jonathan Spicer and Frances Kerry.
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