Twilight News Edition 269
Edition 269, 20 June 2022
THE RUSSIAN REVENUE SITUATION
By Ishana Katriar
The biggest supplier of oil to China has been announced to be Russia, since the country has sold a lot of cruise oil to Beijing over the Ukraine War. Imports of Russian oil to China has risen by around 55% from a year (recorded this May), and this has taken off Saudi Arabia as China’s biggest provider.
China has purchased a lot more Russian oil despite the demand slowing down due to COVID and a slow economy. In February, the two countries declared that the countries friendship was limitless.
Chinese oil companies, which include Sinopec and state-run Zhenua Oil, have increased exponentially in their purchases of Crude Oil in the past year after the major discounts. Russian initial buyers (other European countries and the US) have shunned out the oil purchases after the Ukraine War, to make sure that Russia didn’t get any money from oil sales.
The new imports to China have totalled to around 8.42 million tonnes, according to data. This made Saudi Arabia, the second largest provider, in second place with 7.82 million.
Back in March, the US and the United Kingdom said they would ban Russian oil because of the invasion of Ukraine. At the time, US President Joe Biden said that this move targeted “the main artery of Russian Economy” which therefore showed the support to Ukraine. While energy exports are vital to Russia, it is predicted to impact western countries more.
FORMER SRI LANKAN CRICKETER HELPS OUT AMIDST THE COUNTRY’S FOOD CRISIS
By Ahana Barthwal
Roshan Mahanama, a former Sri Lankan cricketer, has recently teamed up with an NPO to offer refreshments to citizens who are forced to wait in long queues to get access to petrol.
Sri Lanka is currently suffering a terrible economic crisis—the worst since its independence in 1948. The nation is out of funds, struggling to import medicines, fuel and even food.
On June 18, Rohan Mahanama encouraged Sri Lankans to look after one another in these tough times, via a tweet. “We served tea and buns with the team from Community Meal Share this evening for the people at the petrol queues around Ward Place and Wijerama Mawatha,” he stated. “The queues are getting longer by the day and there will be many health risks to people staying in queues.”
As riots and protests against the government’s inadequate crisis management intensified, the country’s prime minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa, stepped down during the month of May.
According to the United Nations, the food shortage situation in the country is so grave that 4 out of 5 people have started to skip meals.
In response to this, the United Nations’ food assistance department, the World Food Programme, is aiming to raise $60 million in funds, to alleviate food scarcity in Sri Lanka, and begin a food relief effort from June to December.
Compiled and Edited by Saachi Mehra