Russia, Belarus end crude standoff

摘要

After a month-long standoff over Russian crude oil supply terms to Belarus for 2010, Moscow and Minsk finally signed a deal January 27 that should ensure the smooth transit of oil to Europe. Under the terms of the agreement signed by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin and his Belarus counterpart Vladimir Semashko, Russia will supply Belarus with 6.3 million mt (126,000 b/d) of crude tax-free in 2010, while the full crude export duty will be imposed on the remaining 15.2 million mt of supplies, a Russian government spokesman said.