1in.am The 21st package of EU sanctions against dozens of legal entities in Russia has been agreed upon. According to the Azerbaijani opposition Gazetchi website, the list also includes the company «Redwood Global Supply FZ-LLC», which has been under sanctions from the UK government since last year.
According to open sources, the company is registered in the United Arab Emirates, but information about its founders and shareholders is not published. According to data published by the Ukrainian government, the company is «one of the major exporters of Russian crude oil».
The Azerbaijani opposition website has found that the «managers of the company engaged in the large-scale export of Russian oil are Tahir Garayev, Etibar Eyubov, Talat Safarov, and Ahmed Kerimov». It is unclear whether these individuals are citizens of Azerbaijan or another country, but «there is a reasonable assumption that they are connected to the owner of the «Lukoil» company, Vagit Alekperov».
«Lukoil» is a major Russian oil company that has a stake in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan project. Its owner, Alekperov, has a stable ranking among the hundred most influential figures in Russia.
It is unknown how connected the «Redwood Global Supply FZ-LLC» company is to the Azerbaijani authorities or the SOCAR state oil and gas company. It has previously been revealed that a company, which owns several tankers subject to EU sanctions, is registered in a multi-apartment building in Sumgayit, Azerbaijan, and its founding capital is only one thousand manats.
International media have always raised alarms about shadow cooperation in the oil and gas sector between Russia and Azerbaijan. There are suspicions that a large portion of the natural gas exported from Azerbaijan to EU countries is «actually Russian». This information has not been officially confirmed, but it has not been denied either. The inclusion of companies registered in Azerbaijan that are engaged in the export of tanker and Russian crude oil, and have Azerbaijani managers, in the EU sanctions list deepens the suspicions about «transactions» between Russia and Azerbaijan.
The adoption of the sanctions package against Russian companies and banks by the EU followed Ilham Aliyev's visit to Berlin, during which he announced Azerbaijan's capabilities and willingness to replace Russia in the EU's energy security matters. If it is confirmed that Azerbaijan or its directly or indirectly affiliated companies are effectively supporting Russia and engaged in the export of large volumes of Russian crude oil, then European public opinion may turn against Aliyev. Especially since Azerbaijani political exiles operating in various European countries are complaining about the «accommodating nature» of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and criticizing her for «ignoring human rights protection in exchange for gas».
* This text was automatically translated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).
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