Malta should not be directly affected by the fresh EU sanctions adopted against Syria at the end of last week, sources told The Times yesterday.
The sanctions, aimed at piling pressure on President Bashar al-Assad’s regime to step down, include a blanket embargo on the purchase, importation and transportation of all Syrian oil to the EU.
The Syrian government controls the main oil companies in the country. EU sources said Malta, together with other member states, approved these new restrictive measures. Malta is not expected to be “directly hit” by these sanctions as the island does not import any oil from Syria.
“Almost 95 per cent of Syrian oil is imported by France, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands,” a source said. “These are the main markets to be hit although everyone understands something has to be done to deny important finances arriving to the current regime.”
A Finance Ministry spokesman confirmed that Enemalta did not import any oil from Syria.
“We are not importing any oil directly from any particular country as at the moment Enemalta imports all its needs from the international markets. This means we purchase all our products, be it oil for the power stations or fuels for transport, through international companies which source their products from various markets,” the spokesman said.
The spokesman argued that these sanctions, which at the end of the day restricted oil availability, may still have an indirect effect on Malta as oil prices might get higher due to less oil being available on the international markets.
“Prices are determined by the usual demand and supply formula and the restrictions on oil from Syria will obviously restrict supply,” the spokesman said.
According to estimates, Syria exports some 110,000 barrels of crude oil to the EU every day, earning it an estimated €9 million a day. This goes mainly to countries with refineries, such as France and the Netherlands.
Italy, which initially opposed sanctions due to its contracts with Syria, accepted a last minute deal so that contracts which have already been signed and paid for will be honoured until November 15. From then on no Syrian oil will be allowed into the EU. Apart from the embargo on oil, the EU also agreed to add four Syrian individuals to the list of persons prohibited from staying in the EU and whose assets will be frozen together with those of three new companies. These measures follow the violent crackdown on the civilian population which has left more than 2,200 dead, according to the latest UN estimates.