Russia’s sanctions-dodging is getting ever more sophisticated

OnFebruary24thEUEUg America marked the anniversary of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine by freezing the assets of a dozen more Russian banks. Britain and the also lengthened their blacklists. Part of the reason for tightening sanctions again is to close loopholes in the existing regime: America is going after “evasion-related targets”; Europe vows to punish those “betraying” Ukrainians. As joint research by and SourceMaterial, an investigative outfit, suggests, Russia’s sanctions-dodging is only getting more advanced—especially when it comes to flogging the oil that funds Mr Putin’s war.A month ago Europe imposed an import ban on refined Russian oil, having already banned purchases of the country’s crude. To keep global supply flowing while limiting Mr Putin’s revenues, the allows its shippers, insurers and banks to continue facilitating Russian exports to other countries so long as the oil is sold below a price set by the 7 group of big economies. But Russia’s petroleum has not become as much of a bargain as hoped. Most countries outside the West have not introduced their own sanctions, allowing the rise of an army of shady middlemen beyond the reach of Western measures. Our investigation sheds light on a missing piece of the puzzle: how their trade is financed.