US extended Japan's waiver to buy Russian oil, while pressuring other countries to give up Russian fuels
The Donald Trump administration extended Japan's waiver yesterday, allowing the country to buy oil from Russia's Sakhalin-2 project. The waiver should also allow natural gas production to continue and the gas to be exported in liquefied form (LNG). The US government's move may seem counterintuitive, since in recent months it has pressured other countries, particularly India, to stop importing Russian oil and other fossil fuels.
Russia remains a major supplier of fossil fuels, which are imported by some EU states as well as countries in other regions. One such country is Japan, where Russia accounts for almost one-tenth of LNG imports, according to Reuters. One source of Russian LNG for Japan is the Sakhalin-2 project, in which Japanese companies Mitsui and Mitsubishi together hold just under a quarter stake.
The United States has now extended the waiver allowing Japan to receive oil and natural gas from this source. The waiver from sanctions imposed by the previous administration before Donald Trump took office is set to remain in effect until the middle of next June. Reuters also reported that the US government extended a waiver for transactions with Russian banks, including Gazprombank, related to the civilian nuclear program.
Japan is highly dependent on imported fossil fuels, which cover the vast majority of the country's energy needs. According to Reuters sources, Japan's prime minister told Donald Trump at a meeting in Tokyo this October that restricting Russian LNG imports would be very difficult, and that if Japan stopped buying the gas, only China and Russia would benefit.
"Ensuring LNG supplies from abroad, including from the Sakhalin-2 project, is extremely important for Japan's energy security, and we will continue to work closely with the United States and the international community to make every effort to ensure that LNG supplies to Japan are not disrupted," said Minoru Kihara, Japan's chief cabinet deputy secretary.
Translation disclaimer
This article is a machine translation of the Czech original and has not yet been fully reviewed. In case of any doubt, please refer to the Czech version.
