Greater Middle East (bbabo.net), - Representatives of the EU governments on Monday failed to reach an agreement on the level of price caps for Russian oil. This was reported by Reuters with reference to diplomats. “There is no agreement. Legal texts have already been agreed, but Poland cannot yet agree on a price, ”the agency quotes the words of one of the diplomats. The European Commission last week proposed a cap of $65-70 per barrel, which was opposed by Poland and the Baltic countries. Greece, Cyprus and Malta, dependent on tanker traffic, are in favor of a higher ceiling or some form of compensation. Speaking about the price cap, another European diplomat said that with a range of $12-20 per barrel, Russia would be able to cover the cost of production. On November 25, the EU countries failed to agree on a price ceiling for the supply of Russian oil, negotiations were postponed to November 28.
The discussion on the price ceiling for Russian oil, according to the US authorities, is going well, John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the White House National Security Council, said during a briefing. “We think the discussions are going well. Colleagues from the EU are working on modalities right now, how it will be implemented, at what level. We believe that the discussion is going on quite actively, so I don't think there is any pressure on us to take [in these discussions] more than we already do,” he said. Reuters, citing diplomats, reported that the representatives of the EU countries at the negotiations on November 28 again failed to approve the price ceiling for Russian oil delivered by sea, due to the position of Poland. Politico and the Financial Times also wrote that the negotiations stalled due to Warsaw's position.
The price of Russian Urals oil fell to $51.96 per barrel at the shipping port of Primorsk in the Leningrad Region. This was reported on Monday by Bloomberg, citing data from Argus Media, which tracks changes in commodity prices. The price of Russian oil, thus, was established below the limit discussed by the EU, which is supposed to be set at $ 60-70 per barrel. Meanwhile, Bloomberg also notes that the volume of Russian oil supplies to world markets remains at the level of the previous month and at the moment does not show a downward trend. From December 5, that is, in a week, EU sanctions will come into force, prohibiting insurance for the transportation of Russian oil. This could lead to significant supply constraints and a crisis in the global oil market.
European countries in the period from January to October increased imports of Russian liquefied natural gas by 42% compared to the same period in 2021. As the Financial Times reported on Monday, the volume of LNG delivered from Russia in the first 10 months of 2022 amounted to a record 17.8 billion cubic meters. m. According to the publication, Russian LNG accounts for 16% of the total imports of gas delivered by sea in European countries during the reporting period. The main buyers were Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands and France. At the same time, Europe received 62.1 billion cubic meters through gas pipelines. m of Russian gas since the beginning of the year. According to the FT, such data indicate that the Old World is not ready to completely abandon gas from Russia. As Anne-Sophie Corbeau, a specialist at the Center for Global Energy Policy at Columbia University in New York, suggested, Russia may one day refuse to supply LNG to Europe. In that case, Corbeau continued, the Europeans would be forced to "buy [gas] in the even more expensive spot market." She also believes Russia could deploy its LNG tankers to countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan and sell gas at lower prices to "earn political advantages" and "pressure the Europeans."Serbia buys gas on average 4.5 times cheaper than other European countries, President Aleksandar Vucic said in an interview with Pink TV channel. “Gas is getting more expensive, about $1,385 [per 1,000 cubic meters]. m], while also counting merchants and delivery. You cannot buy it for less than $1.8 thousand [for 1 thousand cubic meters]. m]. And we get it for the most part for $400,” he said. Russia and Serbia agreed on gas supplies on new terms at the end of May. The previous agreement with Gazprom was valid until the end of the month and provided that Serbia would pay $270 per 1,000 cubic meters. m. of gas. Vučić said in March that initially the country was not satisfied with a sharp increase in the cost to $400 per 1,000 cubic meters. m., but due to rising gas prices, the authorities agreed to revise the pricing policy. In 2022, a record increase in gas prices in Europe was recorded. At the end of August, exchange prices for gas in Europe exceeded $3,500 per 1,000 cubic meters. m, then they fell below $ 3,000 per 1 thousand cubic meters. m. As a result of trading on November 28, the cost of gas fell to $ 1,320 per 1 thousand cubic meters. m., follows from the data of the London Stock Exchange ICE.
US President Joe Biden is expected to discuss Ukraine, China, Iran and energy issues with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron during his visit to the States, a senior US administration official said. “Discussions about Ukraine are expected to be at the center of their talks… There will also be discussions about challenges from China as well as from Iran,” she said at the briefing. "They are expected to discuss economic and energy cooperation," the White House added. Macron's visit to the US is expected to begin on November 30 and last for three days.
NATO foreign ministers will meet Tuesday for a two-day meeting in Bucharest to discuss the Ukrainian conflict and continued military assistance to Kyiv. “NATO will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. We won't back down. Allied countries are providing unprecedented military support. And I expect foreign ministers to also agree on increased non-lethal support,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said earlier at a press conference in Brussels. To discuss long-term assistance to Ukraine, an exchange of views with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba is envisaged. Meetings are also scheduled with the foreign ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia and Moldova to "take further steps to help them defend their independence and strengthen their ability to defend themselves."
The Syrian Democratic Forces Kurdish alliance has asked Russian representatives to help reach an agreement between the alliance and the government in Damascus to protect the territories it controls in the northeast of the country, alliance spokesman Aram Khana told Al-Hadas TV on Monday. “We asked the Russians to initiate an agreement to coordinate actions with Damascus to protect our territory,” Khan said. According to him, Russian representatives at a meeting with representatives of the alliance presented him with Turkey's conditions, which "were rejected." Since November 20, Turkey has been conducting an air operation against the Syrian wing of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Syria - strikes were reported on the city of Kobani, as well as in northern Iraq. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the operation a success and did not rule out that a ground operation would follow.
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