As Western Europe continues with its economic “auto-da-fé,” as President Putin aptly described it, proposing to suspend all Russian gas and oil imports, China is preparing for the economic decoupling shocks they believe are coming by increasing their purchases of Russian oil. Bloomberg reported this week that Beijing is talking to Moscow about purchasing additional oil supplies, citing people with knowledge of the plan. China wants to maximize the amounts held in their oil storage tanks with discounted Russian crude before prices rise again. The plan, which would include the ability to pay in yuan, is reportedly still under discussion.
The EU, meanwhile, continues issuing edicts about how European companies are not allowed to pay Russia in rubles, as demanded by the Putin government, while giving its members advice that is intentionally vague to enable countries to open ruble accounts and keep buying Russian gas – since their economies cannot survive without it. As a result, Euractiv reported that “Germany and Italy told companies they could open ruble accounts to keep buying Russian gas without breaching sanctions against Moscow following discussions with the European Union,” according to informed sources. Around half of Russia’s 54 gas buyers have already complied with the ruble payment mechanism, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on May 19.
