Russian Oil Sales Face Mounting Pressure as Key Importers Shift Away
WASHINGTON – Russian oil revenues are facing increasing strain as major importers, including India adn Turkey, begin to reduce purchases, coinciding with cancellations of orders by Chinese oil giants following recent sanctions. The shift threatens to substantially impact Russian finances already weakened by Western restrictions, though the full extent of the impact remains uncertain as China has yet to face targeted measures from the U.S.
The pullback by these key buyers represents a critical growth in the ongoing effort to curtail Russia’s ability to finance its war in Ukraine. Ankara, previously the third-largest importer of Russian hydrocarbons after India and China-accounting for 20% of Russian revenue-is now diversifying its sources to include Iraq, Libya, Saudi Arabia, and Kazakhstan. Simultaneously, Indian refiners Bharat Petroleum and Hindustan Petroleum have reportedly withdrawn from the Urals crude market as of last week. These moves come as two major Chinese oil groups, Sinopec and PetroChina, have also canceled orders for Russian oil in the wake of sanctions imposed on Lukoil and Rosneft.
While China has dramatically increased its Russian oil imports in recent years-at times placing up to 10% of the 11 million barrels shipped daily into its strategic reserves, which are estimated to hold between 1.2 and 1.3 billion barrels-the recent cancellations signal a potential cooling in that demand. Beijing’s strategic reserves are currently being rapidly filled, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Currently, the Trump management has not indicated plans to implement specific sanctions targeting chinese importers of russian oil. The situation is evolving, and further adjustments in import patterns by major consumers could exert considerable pressure on Moscow’s financial stability.
2 Vaibhav raghunandan, “September 2025 – Monthly analysis of Russian fossil fuel exports and sanctions,” CREA, 14 octobre 2025.
3 Rebecca Feng, ”China Is Filling Up Its Oil reserves Fast,” The Wall street Journal, 1er novembre 2025.
