The Swiss government announces that it will take over the oil embargo against Russia and Belarus, among other things. A large proportion of the international oil trade is transacted via Switzerland.
As one of the most important hubs for international oil trade, Switzerland is adopting the new EU sanctions against Russia and Belarus – including the oil embargo. This was announced by the government in Bern.
The EU sanctions will gradually come into force with transition periods until the beginning of 2023.
The world’s largest oil trader is based in Geneva
According to a report by the Swiss business magazine “Bilanz”, around 50 to 80 percent of the products from Russia, a supplier of raw materials, are traded via Switzerland. The world’s largest independent oil trader is the Dutch trading group Vitol, based in Geneva. According to its own statements, the company, like Trafigura – also from Geneva – has already significantly reduced or given up trading in Russian crude oil and petroleum products.
