Western energy pressure on Russia has backfired – Kremlin envoy

Countries that maintained ties with Moscow made a “wise strategic choice,” Kirill Dmitriev has said

Western efforts to isolate Russian energy have proven counterproductive, Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev has said, noting that the pressure has only pushed Moscow to further develop its economy.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said this week the shipping disruptions as a result of the US-Israeli war on Iran could open opportunities for Russia to expand energy exports. “Against this backdrop, we can look for new buyers who have lost supplies that previously moved through the strait,” he said, suggesting Moscow could redirect oil and gas shipments to alternative markets as Gulf flows face a halt.

Dmitriev, who heads the Russian Direct Investment Fund and serves as the Kremlin's special representative for economic cooperation, stated that “Western energy pressure on Russia has failed and is backfiring,” in an X post on Friday.

“Countries that partnered with Russia on energy made a wise strategic choice” and will “overcome the energy shock best and will be best positioned for the future.”

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Dmitriev was responding to a Wall Street Journal report that the US is preparing to press China to cut its purchases of discounted Russian oil and encourage it to buy more expensive American oil instead.

“Probably not good timing,” Dmitriev wrote, stating that “Russian energy partners always win.”

EU gas prices hit three-year highs this week, sparking renewed calls from politicians across the continent to drop what French opposition figure Florian Philippot called “idiotic” sanctions. Hungary, Slovakia, Italy, Germany, and France have all seen growing demands to resume Russian energy links.

Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that the US will also indefinitely exempt Rosneft's German subsidiaries, currently held by the German government, from sanctions, ensuring refining operations critical to Berlin’s fuel supply continue.

Washington has also temporarily eased sanctions to allow India to buy Russian oil to keep crude flowing in the global market.