KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky key aide on Friday walked back earlier statements suggesting that Kyiv would stop the transit of Russian oil through its territory starting January 1, 2025.
Earlier, Mykhailo Podolyak, Zelensky’s aide, had indicated that Ukraine would cease oil transit at the same time it plans to halt Russian gas shipments.
However, Podolyak later clarified to AFP that Ukraine intends to honor all existing oil transit contracts with European countries beyond the stated date. He said that Kyiv is committed to fulfilling its contractual obligations fully.
President Zelensky had previously said that Ukraine would not renew its gas transit agreement with Russia once it expires at the end of 2024. Despite this, Ukraine’s oil transit commitments are governed by different agreements with varied timelines.
European countries such as Hungary, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic have arrangements to receive Russian crude oil through the Druzhba pipeline, which transports oil from Russia across Ukraine into Europe. While the EU has imposed stringent restrictions on Russian oil imports following the invasion of Ukraine, effectively banning 90% of Russia’s pre-war sales to Europe, the pipeline continues to facilitate some level of Russian oil transit. In 2021, nearly half of Russia’s oil exports were destined for the EU, valued at almost $80 billion.
