Russia admits that sanctions are destroying the oil refining industry
russian government can no longer hide the fact that sanctions are severely impacting the economy. The problems have become so evident that they are now being acknowledged at the highest levels.
▫️russia’s minister of energy, sergey tsivilev, admitted that russian oil refineries are unable to carry out proper maintenance due to sanctions. Equipment previously supplied by European and American companies is now unavailable, and every breakdown leads to months-long downtime.
▫️The equipment shortage, combined with successful drone strikes on russian refineries, is directly affecting consumers: gasoline prices in russia are rising at the fastest pace since the beginning of the year.
However, the shift in rhetoric — from “sanctions don’t work” to public admissions of their impact — is also part of propaganda. The authorities aim to shift blame to external factors, portraying it as “enemy sabotage” to distract from the core issue: all these problems stem from the kremlin’s decision to launch a war against Ukraine. The war remains the primary cause of the crisis, consuming resources and stealing russia’s future for the fourth year in a row.
