Amid talks between the West and Turkish officials about measures to resolve the issue, a shipping agency announced that the number of tankers waiting in the Black Sea to pass through the Bosphorus Strait to the Mediterranean rose by 5 tankers to 16 today. , Thursday.
Specifically, a British Treasury official said the talks were taking place after the Group of Seven major industrialized countries and the European Union implemented new restrictions on Russian oil exports on the 5th of this month.
He added that the Group of Seven, the European Union and Australia had agreed to prevent shipping service providers, such as insurance companies, from dealing with Russian crude exports unless they are sold under a price cap set for Russian crude aimed at depriving Moscow of wartime oil revenues.
The agreement also allows for the shipment of Russian oil to other countries using tankers from G7 countries, European Union member states, insurance companies and credit institutions, if the shipment is purchased at or below the cap specified per barrel, which is $60 per barrel.
Separate Turkish action
However, a separate measure implemented by Turkey since the beginning of the month has caused a backlog of tankers waiting, as it obliges ships to provide proof of insurance coverage during the period of transit in the Bosphorus Strait when calling at Turkish ports.
In turn, the Tribeca Shipping Agency explained that another 5 tankers over 200 meters long are waiting north of the Bosphorus to cross south to the Mediterranean, in addition to the 11 tankers from the previous day. He added that no crossing is planned yet.
Ships carrying Ukrainian grain in Black Sea near Istanbul – Reuters
It indicated that 9 tankers are waiting to cross from the Dardanelles Strait to the south, down from 12 the day before. Three tankers are expected to cross the strait on Thursday, two from Tuapse in Russia to Fujairah in the Emirates and one from Tuzla in Turkey to Sidi Kerir in Egypt.
Million barrel tankers
Interestingly, tankers laden with millions of barrels of oil roam daily from Russian ports through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits in Turkey south to the Mediterranean Sea.
What about ground transportation?
Due to the crisis, Wali Adio, US Deputy Treasury Secretary, expressed to Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal yesterday that the price ceiling only applies to Russian oil and does not necessarily involve additional checks and inspections on ships passing through in Turkish territorial waters, according to the US Treasury Department.
