Attack On Europe: Documenting Russian Equipment Losses During The 2022 Russian Invasion Of Ukraine (2 year anniversary)

Find Out Day for India and Russia has been accelerated again - it is now today.

OilPrice.com (5 Aug):

Trump Imposes 50% Tariffs on Indian Imports Over Russian Oil Purchases

“U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order enacting an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods, explicitly targeting India’s ongoing imports of Russian crude oil. This order increases the total tariff rate on Indian exports to the United States to 50%, the highest level for any country under current U.S. policy.

According to the executive order (effective 21 days after signing, beginning at 12:01?a.m. ET), duties will apply to goods entered for consumption or withdrawn from warehouses on or after that time. “

Trump to meet Putin - Will the War End?

Trump plans to meet Putin next week, hold trilateral meeting with Zelensky without European participation, NYT reports

Kyiv Independent (6 Aug):

"Earlier in the day, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin as Trump's Aug. 8 deadline for Russia to reach a ceasefire with Ukraine looms.

In an Aug. 6 phone call, Trump told European leaders that he plans to meet with Putin and Zelensky without any other representatives from the continent, two sources familiar with the matter said.

The European officials Trump spoke with over the phone appeared to accept Trump's decision not to involve more leaders in the process, one of the sources said.

Trump and Zelensky held a phone call following Witkoff's visit to Moscow. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, U.S. State Secretary Marco Rubio, and Witkoff joined the conversation, the NYT reported."

Russia sinks or swims, on its oil revenues. Europe is now talking about lowering the price cap on Russian oil for it’s next sanctions package, and cracking down on Russia’s shadow fleet - most of which pass through European waters in the Baltic Sea and Danish Straits.

OilPrice.com reports:

“The European Union will propose to G7 finance ministers to lower the price cap on Russian crude from the current $60 per barrel to $50, European Economic Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis said...

...many analysts argue the price cap has become less effective because Russia now largely reroutes its exports through a so-called “shadow fleet” of tankers that evade maritime oversight...

...Russia’s shadow fleet consists of approximately 500 (some estimate 700), mostly poorly insured and aging tankers that ship crude to countries such as India and China, in defiance of Western sanctions. These tankers, estimated to carry as much as 85% of Russia’s oil exports—which bring in a third of Russia’s export revenues—typically have opaque ownership structures and lack top-tier insurance or safety certification. Most belong to anonymous or newly formed shell companies based in jurisdictions such as Dubai, further complicating accountability.

The majority of shadow tankers sail across the Baltic Sea, a route considered critical for Russia’s energy exports. The shadow fleet uses various tactics to avoid detection, including ship-to-ship transfers in international waters, spoofed location data, and fake ship identification numbers. Some estimates suggest that approximately three shadow tankers carrying Russian crude pass through European waters each day, including the Danish straits and the Channel. Some experts estimate the shadow fleet may now include as many as 700 tankers.

However, Lithuanian National Security Advisor Kęstutis Budrys has highlighted the ambiguity surrounding the law on interdiction in international waters, warning that trying to stop the shadow fleet could risk an all-out military confrontation with Russia. Last week, a Russian fighter jet briefly entered Estonia’s airspace, in what some experts suspect was a reprisal for the Estonian military escorting a tanker named Jaguar out of the country’s economic waters. The Estonian navy acted quickly, believing the ship posed a threat to nearby underwater cables, and checked its status and registration. The Russian jet entered Estonian airspace without permission...

...”In the last four or five months of last year, we saw a roughly 10% decline in the amount of oil leaving from Russia,” Finnish Border Guard’s Head of Maritime Safety Mikko Hirvi told Reuters...

...A recent study found that limiting Russia’s shadow fleet may be more effective than simply lowering the oil price cap...

...In April report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) found that Russia’s shadow fleet is shrinking. According to the report, shadow tankers transported 65% of Russian crude exports in April, down from 81% in January. Russia’s fossil fuel export revenues declined 6% month-on-month to EUR 585 million per day in April, while export volumes rose marginally by 1%.” >

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