00:00The US has temporarily eased sanctions on Russian crude oil and petroleum products
00:04that had already been loaded on tankers and are currently floating at sea.
00:09These sanction exemptions are to remain in place until mid-April.
00:13Russia has welcomed the move.
00:15The Kremlin called it an attempt to stabilise world energy markets
00:19and that without significant volumes of Russian oil, any stabilisation is impossible.
00:25On the one hand, it's a remarkable step forward in reversing the current trend
00:30from strengthening sanctions on Russia to weakening them.
00:34The increase in oil exports will help Russia ease its domestic financial pressure.
00:39The Kremlin gets a chance to patch up its budget hole.
00:42On the other hand, it's just a minor development and the US insists
00:47it's not going to completely lift the sanctions pressure on Moscow
00:50and its latest decision is just a short-term measure
00:53which will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government.
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