AIBU to think buying Russian oil again makes no sense?

[Secretseverywhere]

UK to start buying Russian oil again. I know the rise in petrol prices is unpopular. I flinch every time I pull into the forecourt and see the price! However this seems bonkers to me so we will be enabling Russia to keep funding the war in Ukraine whilst aiding Ukraine to defend itself.

How does it end? It just seems like we ( and the U.S. who are also buying) are just dragging this mess out.

News article UK loosens Russian oil sanctions as fuel prices rise www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy42x3g7r89o

That’s awful! I had no idea.

Sounds like we only support Ukraine’s independence when it is easy for us 🤔

It’s really shameful of us to do this.

I think it's dreadful. Putin must be laughing his head off at us.

Ridiculous when we have our own oil which we are too sanctimonious to use.

Possibly the reason the war was started in the first place. Friends in high places..

I have to admit I was reading it and I did think that strategically if Trump wanted to boost up his good friend Putin then he couldn’t of gone about it better. His numbers in the U.S. are terrible though so not sure if anything was thought through.

Apparently the Russians are making an extra 150 million per day due to increased price of oil.

It's only for refined products made in third countries using Russian oil.

It does show how mental the government is though, banning new drilling in UK waters but then panicing and buying Russian derived products.

Lunacy of net zero. If we import oil and use fuel to import it we are environmentally friendly. If we drill it here we are bad. Look at Drax. Look at Russian oil going to India and then here. It makes no sense. Surely if the oil travels further it creates more pollution and costs us more as consumers.

Well unless it’s all really about money for leaders.

Has all the money sent to Ukraine by the UK and other countries been audited?

What changed since The Guardian article n 2015 that said Ukraine is the most corrupted country in Europe. Surely the money going to Ukraine is being audited?

www.theguardian.com/news/2015/feb/04/welcome-to-the-most-corrupt-nation-in-europe-ukraine

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/uk/despite-curbs-britain-importing-oil-from-russia-via-india-report/articleshow/97294291.cms

And this is from a few years ago!

All the more reason to reduce our reliance on oil as a nation.

Yep especially since two refineries have been clued due to higher net zero taxes and Labour policy, decreasing our own supply by 20%

Why is Russian jet fuel better than U.K. version

Don't want to derail the OPs point, but the media seems to have completely lost the ability to report facts like this. We are supporting the war from both sides now and there seems to be no effort to come to the table to negotiate an end to it. The fact is the Ukraine is a very very flawed place and pretending otherwise is costing us all
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/03/22/zwgm-m22.html

@ThedaBara

The media clearly have an agenda or they have their hands tied by officials.

Are people getting ‘cash back’ via Ukraine and India.

Surely Miliband, Starmer etc are not so daft to realise if oil has to travel 1000 miles it uses more emissions than oil travelling 100 miles.

If it doesn’t make sense usually part of the tale is missing - and often that’s money into people’s pockets.

Id like to see a financial audit on money into Ukraine.

Hypocrisy of the government at its best. Instead of standing up to Trump at the start the government is now back tracking and making the UK look immoral and stupid.

More windfarms and more solar would be a good first step. The NIMBYs and related idiots who oppose them are seriously working against the country's best interests.

We were importing oil from Russia long before Trump.

I wouldn’t want Trump round for dinner but it’s clear the papers/government are trying to blame him for it.

This article from the bbc shows we were participating in the oil farce before Trump was president.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-68018660

Extract for those who hate clicky links. - In a separate research paper, campaign group Global Witness estimated that throughout 2023, some 5.2 million barrels of refined petroleum products that had been produced from Russian crude oil were imported to the UK.

The authorities do not need Trump to make them look immoral and stupid when they do a damn good job of doing stupid and immoral things all by themselves.

It's a difficult situation, but what alternative do we realistically have right now? We haven't completely capped the North Sea, but the government literally just voted against issuing new drilling licenses. With fuel prices skyrocketing from the Middle East conflict, they've had to relax sanctions so we can buy fuel refined from Russian oil via India. Norway is still heavily drilling in their side of the North Sea, but we already import a lot of that and it's clearly not enough to cover our needs.

What was the excuse in 2023
and 2022?

The exclusive figures shared with the BBC from CREA estimated that during the first 12 months of the Russian oil ban from December 2022, some £569m worth of oil products imported by the UK were derived from Russian crude.
Both reports claimed the so-called loophole indirectly provided the Kremlin with more than £100m in tax revenues.

Difficult. Putin is showing signs he wants to stop fighting. Giving him more money via oil is a bad idea on that score.

It’s jet fuel that’s short so not really a windfarm and solar thing. We had two more major refineries but Labour’s tax policies saw them close.

What worries me most is that this isn’t common knowledge nationally. It’s been going on since the start of sanctions.

France uses even more -

https://www.politico.eu/article/france-talk-tough-ukraine-while-gobble-up-more-russia-gas/

https://b4ukraine.org/whats-new/france-russian-fossil-fuels

Tax payers are funding both sides and paying more for the product. Insane!

Kemi just made PMQs all about this.

Seems like the Labour MPs didn't realise what they were voting for?

I have to admit I had no idea, I knew there was an interim period when EU countries tried to find new sources. There was a big huzzah when Germany stopped buying piped natural gas from Russia and I sort of assumed (stupidly) the rest of Europe had also stopped as handing over billions in aid makes no sense otherwise.

It’s like investing heavily into policing the war on drugs but still buying coke at the weekend.

Apparently we support Ukraine right up to the point that the support might threaten our low budget all inclusive to Benidorm.

Yep. Trump and Netanyahu's war in the Middle East has been an absolute bonanza for Putin.

Today's decision is a direct result of that war, despite any attempts to say "Look over there!"

From that BBC article you linked, OP, today's decision isn't a loosening of existing sanctions. New sanctions are being introduced, including closing the loophole described above about third party refiners.

Some of the planned additional sanctions are still being implemented on schedule, but the ban on third party refiners will now be phased in slowly rather than immediately.

UK waters down new Russian oil sanctions as fuel prices rise
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy42x3g7r89o

It's infuriating. Putin must be popping champagne corks over the whole situation.