Knife in the back for Kyiv, fraternal kisses for Moscow: Belarus in search for oil alternatives (ENG video)

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Last week, Alyaksandr Lukashenka kept dozens of Russian journalists in the room for more than 5 hours. He told them about the eternal friendship between Belarus and Russia. At the same time he conveyed messages for Moscow. We are not going to analyze all of them, but rather turn our attention to the topic of hydrocarbons. According to Lukashenka, the Kremlin is deliberately limiting the powers of Belarusian operators working on Russian oil fields in order to put pressure on Minsk through hydrocarbon sales. Therefore, Belarus is seriously considering the option of more expensive oil supplies through Ukraine, which Russia is actually in war with, albeit a hybrid one.

It was him who hooked Belarus up on Russian oil and gas and is now trying to remove the dependency. On Wednesday, Lukashenka has threatened Moscow with returning to non-Russian supplies of raw materials from Ukraine to Mazyr oil refinery — via Odessa-Brody pipeline or rail. After all, Moscow has cut on oil supplies through the “Druzhba” pipeline to force Minsk to pay the disputed debt for gas.

“This year, Belarusian refineries were supposed to process 24 million tons of oil. In the first six months they have processed almost 12 million tons, but in the 3rd and 4th quarter Russia has supplied less oil than promised and, as a result, Belarusian oil refineries are forced to reduce the processing almost twofold,” Tatsyana Manyonak, an economic observer and energy sector expert, told Belsat TV.

We’ve been through this during the previous oil wars, even when we had high oil prices, Lukashenka recalled. We can repeat it. Previously, we purchased raw materials in Venezuela, now Azerbaijan and Iran are ready to supply it for us.

“An Azeri oil tanker has already been processed at the Mazyr Oil Refinery — 84.7 thousand tons. It is about 2.5 days of work at the Mazyr Oil Refinery. It’s not enough. Of course, if we talk about a serious alternative, it is obvious that it is necessary to include the pipeline. It will be cheaper,” Tatsyana Manyonak said.

Kyiv also offers to enable Odessa-Brody pipeline in full capacity. This is beneficial both economically and politically for both countries.

“Ukraine is offering Belarus not only to use the pipeline to pump oil, but also to recycle Ukrainian oil, which Ukraine has acquired or produced, at the Mazyr plant using tolling scheme,” Ihar Tyshkevich, an expert of the Ukrainian Institute for the Future, told Belsat.

The tolling scheme means: you give us oil, we give you diesel. Everyone has money.

“Belorusneft”, which has been gradually pulling raw materials on the Ukrainian land, promised last week to use there its own manufacturing operations – codenamed SKIF – to extract oil from complex reserves. It will drill a layer 100 meters across the well.

In addition to energy, Belarus and Ukraine are actively working on joint projects in the military industry, the scientific and the transport sector. There have been notable developments in advanced logistics industry — river freight.

“The Mazyr Oil Refinery has 2 barges transporting petrol and diesel either to the city near Kyiv – Ukrainka – or slightly below the Dnipro,” Ihar Tyshkevich said.

Restoration of the E-40 river route is of the most ambitious projects with the participation of Belarus, Ukraine, Poland, and the involvement of EU money. Water route between the Baltic and the Black Sea through Warsaw, Brest, Pinsk, Kyiv and Dnipro gives the ability to carry loads in both directions several times cheaper than using railway or vans. The project fits into the Lukashenka’s demonstrative multi-vector policy. He is a friend and partner to all.

“There are scary rumors spreading in Ukraine, that Lukashenka may support Putin and if they move in from the north, Ukraine will disappear. For the umpteenth time I am telling them that I will not drive to Kyiv on a tank. I ‘ll use the tractor,” Lukashenka promised.

However, claiming to be a friend, Lukashenka has let Ukrainians down. On Tuesday, the Belarusian representative at the UN tried to block a resolution on human rights violations in Crimea, where the Russian annexation of the peninsula is registered as a temporary occupation. After the maneuvre failed, Minsk voted against the resolution, as did Moscow.

“We defend the right of all post-Soviet countries to have an independent foreign policy and have to communicate this to our partners. As for the position of Belarus, we regard it as a knife in the back,” Iryna Gerashchenko, Vice-Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, said.

Belarus has a knife in the back for Kyiv, but fraternal kisses for Moscow. And now give us oil, as much as you can.

Yaraslau Stseshyk/OS, Belsat.eu