BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS
DATE:
11/01/2010
Minsk playing hardball in oil spat?
MOSCOW, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Minsk negotiators are reacting harshly to Moscow's decision to balk on duty-free oil exports to Europe as the latest oil spat evolves, analysts said.
Both countries are lingering over negotiations on export duties that Belarus charges for oil that it imports from Russia.
Andrew Neff, an analyst at IHS Global Insight in Washington, told The Moscow Times the row could grow in severity before both sides reach a settlement.
"From the Belarusian perspective, this is simply turning the tables and giving Russia a taste of its own medicine," he said. "Belarusian officials feel that Russia is being similarly spiteful in attempting to impose export tariffs on crude oil supplies."
Minsk relies on export duties for the bulk of its federal revenue.
Moscow said it would offer concessions to Belarus, but not for the oil it exports to Eastern Europe. Belarus, for its part, wants imports to be duty free.
Russia supplies Europe with a significant portion of its natural resources. A gas dispute with Kiev in January 2009 left parts of Europe in the cold for weeks. Oil continues to flow through Belarus, though negotiations are at a standstill.
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