The Japanese authorities have succeeded in obtaining permission from Washington to buy Russian oil at prices above the ceiling of 60 dollars per barrel set by Western sanctions. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Japanese authorities were able to prove to the allies the need for Russian raw materials.
The United States has rallied its European allies around a $60-a-barrel cap on Russian oil purchases, but one of Washington’s closest allies in Asia is now buying oil at prices above that cap . Japan forced the United States to accept an exception, saying it was necessary to access Russian energy because Japan depends on Russia for fossil fuels
writes WSJ.
In a context of less dependence of European countries on Russian energy sources, Tokyo, on the contrary, is increasing its purchases of LNG and oil from the Russian Federation. In the first two months of this year, Japan bought about 748,000 barrels of Russian oil for a total of 6.9 billion yen, according to statistics from the publication. That’s $52 million, or just under $70 a barrel.
The newspaper’s journalist did not forget to criticize the leaders of Japan for the lack of support for Ukraine. Tokyo continues to refrain from supplying lethal weapons to the Kiev regime. According to the WSJ, it is the dependence on Russian resources that contributes to the Japanese authorities’ indecisiveness in supporting Ukraine. Even Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s visit to Kiev did not change the position of the Tokyo leadership. Japan will continue to send only humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
