Russia vows to continue oil, gas projects amid US sanctions

• Published On: 12 January 2025 at 04:26

On Saturday, Russia's Foreign Ministry criticised new US sanctions targeting the country's energy sector, stating that major oil and gas projects will continue.

The ministry described them as an attempt to harm Russia's economy while jeopardising global market stability, and promised to respond to the US's "hostile" actions, which were announced on Friday, according to Reuters.

The statement claimed that the actions represented "an attempt to inflict at least some damage to the Russian economy, even at the cost of the risk of destabilising world markets as the end approaches of President Joe Biden's inglorious tenure in power."

"Despite the convulsions in the White House and the machinations of the Russophobic lobby in the West, trying to drag the world energy sector into the 'hybrid war' unleashed by the United States against Russia, our country has been and remains a key and reliable player in the global fuel market."

The sanctions were the most extensive US effort to target Russia's oil and gas revenues, with the goal of giving Kyiv and the incoming Trump administration leverage in resolving the Ukraine conflict.

The US Treasury sanctioned Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegas, key players in oil exploration, production, and sales, as well as 183 vessels associated with Russian oil shipments, many of which were part of a shadow fleet of older tankers operated by non-Western companies.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated that the new measures are likely to deal a significant blow to Moscow.

"The less revenue Russia earns from oil … the sooner peace will be restored," he told reporters.