The new oil agreement between the US and Russia includes the international assets of Lukoil, the largest private oil company in Russia. This agreement, linked to the main US negotiators, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, is likely to require approval from Washington and the Kremlin.
Details of the Oil Contract
The main group of buyers in this agreement includes the US government, Todd Boehly, an American investor, and two Middle Eastern groups that have business ties with Kushner and the Witkoff family. Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, mentioned this during his meeting with Witkoff and Kushner on September 5, stating that his goal with this proposal is to show the possibility of trade with the US to the Russian public.
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Background of Sanctions
Washington sanctioned Lukoil a year ago, forcing the company to sell its foreign assets, which are currently valued at $20 billion. The company’s refineries in the Netherlands, Bulgaria, and Romania produce diesel and jet fuel. Given the shortage of supply of these products and the demand in the market, this agreement could provide an incentive to support it.
Approval of this agreement by Washington would mean lifting US sanctions against these assets and could lead to an increase in their value. One of the major investors in this scheme is a conglomerate based in Qatar managed by the brothers Mutaz and Ramiz Al-Khayat. These two brothers are also partners in a luxury resort project in Albania with Kushner and his wife Ivanka Trump.
Additionally, the Abu Dhabi fund controlled by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the National Security Advisor of the UAE, is also involved in this agreement. This fund had previously purchased significant shares of the Trump family's cryptocurrency company, known as 'World Liberty Financial,' of which Witkoff is a co-founder.
However, there are no signs of personal gain for Kushner or Witkoff from this contract, and Witkoff's spokesperson has denied any conflict of interest or financial benefit. Hoi Chen, a former ethics advisor at the US Department of Justice, has described these relationships as a concerning and alarming web of entanglements.
These developments come as Ukraine has recently announced the use of an indigenously produced ballistic missile on the battlefield. This missile, named FP-7, with a range of about 250 kilometers, can only target border areas of Russian territory and is not expected to have a significant impact on the air battle balance.
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