The Russian government has accused the West of reshaping at its own peril and in a «dangerous and illegitimate» way the principles of the free market by setting a $60 (about 57 euros) cap on oil from Russia on Friday.
In response to the U.S. applause for the agreement reached Friday by the EU, the Russian Embassy in Washington «takes note of the arrogant American statements.»
«Washington strategists, hiding behind lofty slogans of ensuring the energy security of developing countries, maintain a wall of silence on the fact that the current imbalances on the energy markets stem from their ill-conceived actions: the introduction of sanctions against Russia and bans on energy imports from our country,» it adds in a note carried by the TASS news agency.
«The Western collective,» the Embassy adds, «is trying to solve the problems they themselves have so impetuously created and, in fact, we are witnessing a reshaping of the basic principles of the free market.»
Russian diplomacy warns, in this regard, that «decisions such as these will inevitably generate greater uncertainty and impose higher costs for consumers of raw materials» and they predict that, from now on, «no country will be immune to the introduction of all kinds of ‘caps’ on its exports for political reasons», they added.
«Regardless of the current flirtations with this dangerous and illegitimate instrument, we are confident that Russian oil will continue to be in demand,» the statement concludes.
The measure follows the agreement reached within the G7 to set a cap between $65 and $70 on Russian crude, and is aimed at oil transported by sea and will not affect oil arriving in Europe via pipeline, following the exception won by Hungary and other landlocked European partners who cite their heavy dependence on Russian oil.
