China has sharply criticized US plans to tighten sanctions on buyers of Russian energy. On Wednesday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian accused Washington of “double standards and coercion.” China is one of the largest purchasers of Russian oil. Russia funds a significant portion of its war of aggression against Ukraine through revenue from energy exports.
A bipartisan bill from four US senators had secured the support of US President Donald Trump, who could use it to impose punitive tariffs and sanctions. “China firmly opposes unilateral sanctions that are not grounded in international law and have not been authorized by the UN Security Council,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin. China would take all necessary steps to defend the legitimate rights and interests of its companies and citizens.
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On Friday, US senators announced that the measures involved “tools that exact a high price from those who buy Russian oil and gas and thereby fuel Putin’s war machine.” No details were provided.
However, an earlier proposal had called for imposing 500 percent tariffs on countries that purchase Russian oil, gas, uranium, and other products. The bill’s sponsors included Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who died unexpectedly over the weekend.
The US had temporarily eased the sanctions imposed on Russia over the Ukraine war due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran conflict and the resulting sharp rise in oil prices. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Russia was subsequently able to nearly double its oil revenues for a time. However, at the G7 summit in France in mid-June, Trump agreed to reimpose US sanctions on Russian oil exports.
Author: AFP – paj/fs
Sources: AFP press portal