Beijing has expressed its disagreement with US sanctions against the Russian oil sector, imposed by Washington in the hope of forcing Moscow to end the war in Ukraine, Agence France-Presse reported, BTA reported.
Yesterday, US President Donald Trump expressed his dissatisfaction with Russian President Vladimir Putin and said that his talks with him "are leading nowhere", and US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant announced sanctions against Russian oil giants "Rosneft" and "Lukoil", which he said "finance the Kremlin's war machine".
China has expressed its disapproval of the new US sanctions.
"China has consistently opposed unilateral sanctions that are not based on international law and not approved by the UN Security Council," said Guo Jiakun, a spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at a regular press conference.
Beijing is the world's largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, including petroleum products.
Yesterday, the EU also announced that it had reached an agreement to tighten sanctions against Russian fossil fuels. Today, the 19th package of sanctions was officially adopted.
The US has imposed sanctions on the two largest Russian oil companies, "Rosneft" and "Lukoil" due to the war in Ukraine and announced that they are ready to take further action. Washington has called on Moscow to immediately agree to a ceasefire in Russia's war in Ukraine, Reuters reported.
"Given President (Vladimir) Putin's refusal to end this senseless war, the Treasury Department is sanctioning the two largest Russian oil companies that finance the Kremlin's war machine," said the official statement by US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant. "We urge our allies to join us in complying with these sanctions."
After the US measures were announced, oil prices immediately jumped by more than $2 a barrel. Futures for the benchmark Brent crude oil rose to around $64.
The sanctions mark a significant shift in Trump's policy, which had not sanctioned Russia for the war and instead relied on trade measures, Reuters notes. Earlier this year, he imposed additional 25 percent tariffs on goods from India over its purchases of Russian oil.
The United States has taken similar action against another major consumer of Moscow's black gold - China. In recent years, the $60 price ceiling on Russian oil, imposed after the invasion of Ukraine, forced Russia to redirect its oil exports from Europe to Asia.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he had canceled a planned summit in Hungary with Putin because he felt now was not the right time for it.