Military-ruled Burma maintains friendly relations with Russia, and both of these countries face wide-ranging sanctions imposed by Western countries: to Burma for last year’s coup d’état, which resulted in the army overthrowing the democratic governmentand Russia for invading Ukraine.
Russia, which is already supplying the Burmese army with weapons, is looking for new customers for its energy resources, because its largest market, Europe, will start gradually introducing an embargo on Russian oil this year – emphasizes Reuters.
“We have received an authorization to import gasoline from Russia,” Zaw Min Tun said at a press conference on Wednesday, judging that it is a fuel valued for its “quality and low price”.
The spokesman added that the head of the ruling junta, Min Aung Hlaing, discussed oil and gas during his visit to Russia in July. Currently, Burma imports fuel via Singapore.
According to a press release published by the state media, the military government has created a special committee for the purchase of oil from Russia, led by a close associate of Min Aung Hlaing. The committee is to oversee the purchase, import and transportation of fuel at reasonable prices in line with Burma’s needs, it said.
In addition to political chaos and social unrest, Burma has suffered from high fuel prices and electricity shortages. This prompted military authorities to look for sources of fuel imports that could be used in power plants, explains Reuters.
Since the coup of February 1, 2021 the price of gasoline in Burma has increased by about 350 percent. to 2300-2700 kyats (approx. $ 1) per liter. In parts of the country last week, gas stations stopped working due to fuel shortages.