Support The Moscow Times!

Belarus Offers to Supply Oil Products to Ukraine

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. RIA Novosti / Wikicommons

MINSK — Belarus is ready to supply Ukraine with oil products, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko told his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko on Monday.

Belarus has two major refineries but gets the bulk of its oil from Russia, which annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in March and is now under Western sanctions.

"Alexander Lukashenko stressed that Belarus understands the acuteness of this problem during the harvesting campaign and therefore, despite domestic needs, will assist Ukraine in ensuring its economy has oil products," the Lukashenko's administration said in a statement after the two leaders spoke by telephone.

In May, Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan signed an agreement to form the Eurasian Economic Union, which Russian President Vladimir Putin had hoped would rival China, the United States and the European Union as an economic power.

Moscow agreed to ship, duty-free, 23 million tons (169 million barrels) of oil this year to Belarus as a part of an agreement through the Customs Union, whose members are also Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus. In return, Belarus exports oil products, the duty on which it pays to Russia.

Ukraine, one of the world's key grain exporters via the Black Sea, is currently in the middle of a harvesting campaign which could be undermined by rising fuel prices, officials say.

See also:

Belarus to Host Crisis Talks Between Russia, Ukraine and OSCE

As Tensions Flare, Russian Ministry Proposes Duties on Ukrainian Imports

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more