Today, a coalition of 16 civil society organisations from Ukraine and the European Union sent a letter addressed to the Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Albanese, urging the Australian Government to take immediate action to close the Russian oil refining loophole — a critical gap in Western sanctions that continues to funnel billions of dollars to the Kremlin and finance its illegal invasion of Ukraine.
This appeal follows recent actions by the European Union and the United Kingdom, which have tightened their sanctions by banning not only Russian oil but also any refined fuels made from Russian crude — no matter where that processing takes place. This decisive step has limited Russia’s ability to disguise and sell its oil through intermediaries in countries such as India, Türkiye, China, and Singapore and will cut an estimated USD 4.5 bn annually in Russian crude export revenues.
Australia, however, remains exposed. Despite banning direct Russian oil imports, Australia is the world’s largest importer of refined fuels made from Russian crude, primarily from refineries in India.
● From February 2023 until the end of June 2025, Australia imported USD 6.4 billion in oil products from Indian refineries using Russian crude, with USD 2.5 billion estimated to be refined directly from it.
● More than 90 percent of these imports come from India’s Jamnagar refinery, where Russian oil made up to 55 percent of crude feedstock in early 2025.
● In just the first half of 2025, Australia imported USD 1.6 billion of such fuels — almost matching its entire 2023 total.
In effect, Australia has spent more than twice as much on fuels refined from Russian crude as it has provided in aid to Ukraine. These purchases have delivered an estimated USD 1.3 billion in tax revenue to the Kremlin — enough money to pay for over 37,000 of Russia’s Shahed drones, which terrorise Ukrainian civilians in daily attacks.
Every litre of this blood oil undermines Australia’s sanctions, strengthens Russia’s war machine, and contradicts support for Ukraine and the rules-based international order.
With the Government’s newly announced inquiry into the effectiveness of Russian sanctions, this issue will soon face renewed public and parliamentary scrutiny. The coalition therefore urges the Government to act pre-emptively to close the refining loophole and avoid the inevitable reputational and diplomatic embarrassment that inaction would bring.
To align with European allies and ensure Australian imports do not fund aggression abroad, the coalition calls on the Government to adopt a ban guided by the gold-standard policies attached to the letter.
“Australia has stood firmly with Ukraine — yet your continued import of Russian blood oil undermines this support,” the letter said. “By following the example of the EU and UK, and implementing a robust refinery-level ban, Australia can ensure not a single dollar of your trade supports Russia’s war of aggression. We urge the Government to act swiftly to close this loophole and demonstrate that Australia’s commitment to justice, peace, and democracy is uncompromising.”
The letter can be downloaded here and has so far been signed by:
● Nezir Sinani, Executive Director, B4Ukraine Coalition
● Olexi Pasyuk, Executive Director, Centre for Environmental Initiatives “Ecoaction”
● Isaac Levi, Europe-Russia Policy & Energy Analysis Team Lead, Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air
● Martin Vladimirov, Director, Centre for the Study of Democracy
● András Lukács, President, Clean Air Action Group
● Olena Pavlenko, President, DiXi Group
● Vladimir Slivyak, Co-Chairman, Ecodefense
● Christopher Lambin, Senior Data Investigator, Global Witness
● Benjamin Hilgenstock, Senior Economist, Kyiv School of Economics
● Vladyslav Darahan, Head of Policy and Advocacy, Mission Ukraine UK
● Martin Hyt’ha, Board Member, Nesehnuti
● Mark Hanis, Founder, Progressive Shopper
● Robert Bachmann, Political Analyst, Public Eye
● Svitlana Romanko, Founder and Executive Director, Razom We Stand
● Anastasiia Khymychuk, Chairwoman, StateWatch Thinktank
● Alexander Kirk, Communications Specialist, Urgewald