РУССКИЙ
11:00 05.04.2026 •
Asian countries facing domestic energy shocks due to the conflict in the Gulf are turning to Moscow, agreeing to buy millions of barrels of Russian oil, ‘Financial Times’ writes.
Asian economies are among the most exposed to the global energy crisis stemming from the US and Israel’s war in Iran because of their dependence on oil and gas imports from the Middle East.
While India and China have been the main buyers of Russian crude since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago, other Asian countries have restarted or increased imports of Russian oil in recent days following the US sanctions waiver on Russian supply.
The Philippines and South Korea have already received shipments of Russian oil and petrochemical products, while Vietnam and Sri Lanka are in talks with Russian energy companies. Thailand and Indonesia have confirmed they are open to making purchases.
“These are very desperate countries right now and they want to maximise the US sanctions waiver,” said June Goh, senior oil market analyst at Sparta Commodities in Singapore. “Russia is the no-choice option. If you have someone offering you oil and you are desperate, how can you say no?”
Is it over – oil from the Middle East?
Oil from the Middle East accounts for the majority of crude imports for several Asian countries including the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.
Governments in the region have introduced energy-saving measures — such as implementing four-day weeks and telling citizens to work from home — as well as expanding fuel subsidies as they grapple with strained supplies after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, blocking the flow of oil shipments.
Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, surged 63 per cent in March, its highest monthly rise in decades. It traded above $118 a barrel on Tuesday, from around $70 before the start of the Iran war.
Many Asian countries have also increased use of coal to replace disrupted natural gas shipments that they rely on for electricity generation and to power manufacturing industries.
Indian refiners bought 1mn barrels a day of Russian crude in February, which doubled to 1.9mn b/d by the end of March, according to data provider Kpler.
Some Russian crude intended for markets including China has even been diverted to India, as New Delhi began paying a premium of nearly 5 per cent over prevailing rates.
A fork in the road for Marcos Jr.
Last week, two tankers carrying Russian oil arrived in the Philippines, the first since November 2021, according to Kpler. Petron Corp, which operates the Philippines’ only oil refinery, said it had bought 2.5mn barrels of Russian crude.
Petron supplies 30 per cent of all fuel in the Philippines, which sources nearly all of its oil needs from the Middle East. The country has declared an energy emergency to deal with the energy crisis.
In South Korea, which is undergoing a big energy-saving drive, companies have yet to source Russian crude, but they have bought 27,000 tonnes of Russian naphtha, a material derived from crude oil used to produce plastic goods.
Officials in Thailand and Indonesia, meanwhile, have indicated that they are open to purchasing Russian oil, while Vietnam’s Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical is in talks with Russian partners. In Sri Lanka, state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corp told Bloomberg this week that it was in discussions with Russian oil companies.
“We have not only gone to our... traditional oil suppliers, we have tried to explore other sources that are not affected by the war that is ongoing in the Middle East,” said Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. last week.
“Nothing is off the table. We are looking at everything, everything that we can do.”
…If Western propaganda is to be believed, the US “lifted sanctions against Russian oil” are… for the benefit of Russia, which began reaping superprofits!
It's an interesting situation: the US is actively damaging relations with its former NATO allies, but is playing along with Moscow?
read more in our Telegram-channel https://t.me/The_International_Affairs
