As the UN COP30 conference got underway with a lack of real climate leadership, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy enacted a new round of sanctions targeting Russia’s key fossil fuel expansion projects in the Arctic, with measures expected to be followed by further sanctions at the European Union level. Ukrainian campaign group Razom We Stand reacts to this move with firm support.
The new package of sanctions by the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine targets key companies and individuals that facilitate the Kremlin’s fossil fuel exports from the Arctic, while also driving the climate breakdown.
Dr Svitlana Romanko, Founder and Director of Razom We Stand, said:
“Ukraine’s sanctions are a direct response to the truth we have been uncovering for years. As countless rockets and drones rain down upon Ukraine and the Kremlin continues enjoying the spoils of plundering the Arctic, these sanctions today give hope. The new sanctions measures passed by Ukraine are creating a model for other nations to follow, representing a significant step toward aligning urgent climate action with international sanctions, particularly regarding stopping key Russian oil and gas projects in the Arctic.
Ending the unruly plunder in the most climate-sensitive region of the world and drying up the streams of Russia’s fossil fuel export revenues can deliver real results, linking Ukraine and Europe’s security with the world’s climate security. Every vessel, every trader, every insurer involved in Putin’s Arctic ventures is doubly complicit in helping contribute to both Russian war crimes and climate destruction. The decision is a milestone, but it must be matched by action from Ukraine’s partners in the West. We encourage those world leaders who act in good faith to stand against Russian fossil fuel expansion in the Arctic to give Ukraine and Paris climate goals a fighting chance.”
Existing sanctions against Russian oil and gas, although only partially effective and riddled with loopholes, are already having an impact. Sanctions implemented by Ukraine’s international partners to date have led to a significant drop in revenues from fossil fuel exports for the Kremlin. Reports indicate that Russia’s oil and gas tax revenue has plunged by a quarter in recent months, compared to the same period last year, proving that international sanctions are working and must be strengthened.
Meanwhile, Russia continues to dominate oil and gas production in the Arctic, extracting over 90% of all Arctic fossil fuels in the most brutal and unaccountable ways, purging the indigenous populations and destroying the local environment. The country produces 80% of its gas and 60% of its oil from this fragile region, using revenues to fund its war machine and global aggression.
Moscow is still attempting to expand its fossil fuel operations in the region further through carbon bomb projects, including the delayed and sanctions-battered Arctic LNG-2 project and Vostok Oil — potentially Russia’s largest-ever oil development. Vostok Oil is targeting the production of 100 million tons of crude annually from 13 fields on the Taymyr Peninsula with 6.5 gigatons of proven reserves. The Syradasayskoye coal deposit holds another seven gigatons of coal reserves, posing a threat to catastrophic emissions if developed.
Russia had planned to triple cargo traffic through the Northern Sea Route in the next decade, primarily with fossil fuel exports. The Kremlin has militarised the entire region, reviving Soviet era military bases and deploying new weapons of mass destruction.
According to the WWF, if left ungoverned and unrestricted, Arctic fossil fuel extraction will continue to expand and peak by 2040 — primarily driven by Russian projects — and can create a 700% gap between carbon emissions from produced coal, oil and gas and the 1.5°C climate target pathway by 2050. Research also revealed that Russia’s proven Arctic reserves (17 billion tons of oil and 85 trillion cubic meters of gas) already vastly exceed the remaining global carbon budget, which is rapidly expiring.
