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U.S. Sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil as Chinese State Buyers Pause Russian Crude, Lifting Oil Prices

The plan to tap frozen Russian funds for Ukraine remains unresolved despite new EU measures.

Overview

  • The U.S. Treasury blacklisted Russia’s oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil, freezing U.S.-held property and barring American firms from doing business with them.
  • Reuters reported that PetroChina, Sinopec, CNOOC and Zhenhua halted purchases of seaborne Russian crude over sanctions risk, a pause that helped push Brent and WTI up roughly 5–6%, while pipeline flows to China continue.
  • EU governments approved a 19th sanctions package that targets Russia’s shadow fleet, restricts Russian diplomats’ travel and phases out LNG imports from Russia by 2027.
  • EU leaders postponed a decision on leveraging about €210 billion in frozen Russian assets to back financing for Ukraine, citing legal and risk-sharing hurdles ahead of further work toward a December discussion.
  • The Kremlin condemned the U.S. steps as a hostile act, warned of a “very strong” response to any Tomahawk strikes, and Trump confirmed the planned Budapest meeting with Putin was canceled as allied capitals pressed to accelerate military aid to Kyiv.