EU countries are allowed to sell confiscated russian oil, but proceeds may not be transferred to russian citizens or companies

The European Union has authorized member states to sell seized and confiscated russian oil and petroleum products. However, the proceeds from these sales may not be transferred to citizens or companies from the aggressor country—russia.

According to The Insider, this is outlined in an EU Council regulation published on Thursday, July 23.

Previously, European countries were prohibited from purchasing, importing, and transporting russian oil. The ban did not prevent individual EU member states from detaining tankers carrying russian oil or seizing their cargo. At the same time, they were able to fully dispose of the seized oil.

The new regulation allows EU member states to dispose of seized or confiscated oil. It may be transported, stored, or transferred to a free customs zone. However, they are prohibited from allowing any transaction to result in funds being transferred to russian citizens or companies.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the European Union imposed sanctions on Georgia’s only oil refinery for transactions involving russian oil.

As a reminder, on July 23, Politico reported that EU countries had agreed on the 21st package of sanctions against russia.