The Bulgarian government has decided to stop importing crude oil from Russia in March 2024, which is 6 months earlier than planned. This decision was taken to prevent the Russian Federation from circumventing Western sanctions, which are part of a package of measures against its oil sector and are designed to prohibit making money for waging war.
The abandonment of Russian oil will be carried out in two stages. From January 1 next year, the country will suspend export quotas, and from March 1, it will completely stop importing and refining oil from Russia. Bulgarian Finance Minister Assen Vasiliev emphasized that such a decision is useful because it stops exports and money going to Russia and guarantees stability in the domestic fuel market.
We will remind that this loophole allowed Russia to receive an additional 1 billion euros for military actions against Ukraine. Earlier, the Bulgarian parliament approved a phase-out of Russian oil imports, but the loophole continued to bring profits to the Kremlin.
