Australia sends $95m fresh military aid to Ukraine, announces more sanctions Russia's shadow tanker fleet
Australia has announced $95 million in fresh support for Ukraine and new sanctions targeting Russian tankers, amid concerns over ‘blood oil’ fuel imports.
Australia has pledged a further $95m in support for Ukraine and announced further sanctions on Russia’s shadow tanker fleet amid concerns the nation’s motorists are helping to fund Moscow’s war against its neighbour through “blood oil”-derived fuel shipments.
The new package includes a $50m to NATO’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, and a further $45m in military equipment.
The support is the first pledged by the Albanese government this year, and came as Russia-US talks in Moscow failed to yield a peace deal in the long-running war.
It brings Australia’s overall support for the war-torn nation to $1.7bn, including $1.5bn in military assistance.
The new sanctions will target 45 vessels operating under flags of convenience to circumvent international bans on purchasing Russian oil, bringing the total number of sanctioned vessels to 200.
However, the bans will not halt the flow of fuel to Australia derived from Russian crude, with the government so far refusing to require fuel importers to provide assurances their supplies are blood oil-free.
The additional military support includes tactical air defence radars, munitions and combat engineering equipment, and a $2m contribution to the Drone Capability Coalition providing uncrewed aircraft to the country.
Defence Minister Richard Marles said Australia was “unwavering in its support for Ukraine”.
“These commitments will make a tangible difference in Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion,” he said.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the new sanctions were “part of a co-ordinated effort to starve Russia’s oil revenues and limit its ability to finance its invasion”.
“As a result of actions we have taken, direct Australian imports of Russian energy products have fallen from $80 million before Russia’s invasion to zero,” she said.
The announcement came just over a week after a Singapore-flagged tanker containing fuel refined from Russian oil arrived in Perth, discharging nearly 100,000 tonnes of diesel at BP’s import terminal.
The fuel was produced at India’s Jamnagar Refinery, with about 43,000 tonnes of the tanker’s total load believed to be derived from Russian crude.
Australian Federation of Ukrainian Associations co-chair Kateryna Argyrou said at the time that the fuel was a “direct link” between Australian motorists and the “genocidal” Russian regime.
Anthony Albanese has vowed to “stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes”, but Kyiv was beginning to question Australia’s commitment after waiting 12 months without a fresh support package from Canberra.
Ukraine’s Ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko told a federal parliamentary committee in October that Australians had funnelled about $123m into Moscow’s coffers in the preceding four months alone through blood oil-derived fuel purchases – enough to buy 4900 of the drones it attacks Ukraine with each night.
“Fuel importers into Australia, especially for the ADF, must guarantee their refined fuel is free from Russian upstream oil. It can be done. Other nations insist on it. Australia is lagging,” he said.
In closed-door testimony revealed by The Australian, he also accused Australia of profiting from Russia’s invasion of his country through soaring commodity prices, arguing the Albanese government had a moral obligation to give Kyiv a share of the “many billions of dollars” in extra revenue flowing into the budget as a result of the war.
Senator Wong told a Senate estimates hearing in October that Australia was unable to prevent the importation of refined fuel made with Russian oil, despite its sanctions on Moscow’s shadow fleet.
“What you are talking about is energy products which come via third countries and we don’t have, unfortunately, the mechanisms that we would need to track and monitor those,” she said.
Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner ended talks with Russian officials on Wednesday night AEDT, with a Kremlin aide saying afterwards that “compromises have not yet been found.”
The talks followed the leaking of a 28-point US peace proposal in November which was dismissed by Ukraine and European nations as Russian negotiating points.
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