The US has urged Ukraine to halt attacks on Russia’s energy infrastructure, warning that the drone strikes risk driving up global oil prices and provoking retaliation, according to three people familiar with the discussions. […]

One person said that the White House had grown increasingly frustrated by brazen Ukrainian drone attacks that have struck oil refineries, terminals, depots and storage facilities across western Russia, hurting its oil production capacity.

Russia remains one of the world’s most important energy exporters despite western sanctions on its oil and gas sector. Oil prices have risen about 15 per cent this year, to $85 a barrel, pushing up fuel costs just as US President Joe Biden begins his campaign for re-election.

Un-paywalled link: https://archive.ph/wv1Y3

  • Justin@lemmy.jlh.nameEnglish
    57·
    8 months ago

    ffs, William Spaniel already made a video about this. Ukraine is only targeting Russian oil because the US is withholding military aid. There’s no incentive for Ukraine to weaken its war efforts and keep oil prices low, if the US isn’t going to give Ukraine anything in return. You can’t go around complaining about the economic impact of a WAR.

    • CAVOK@lemmy.worldEnglish
      14·
      8 months ago

      Isn’t it the republicans withholding aid to Ukraine? So bombing refineries would drive up prices, making Biden unpopular, increasing the likelihood of Trump getting elected which would make more aid even more unlikely? Or am I missing something? 🤔

      Not bombing them allows Russia to make money though, so it seems both choices are bad ones here.

      • Justin@lemmy.jlh.nameEnglish
        4·
        8 months ago

        That’s a good point. I hadn’t considered that incentive. It’s possible that maybe Ukraine will hold off on oil attacks until after the election, then.

    • nivenkos@lemmy.worldEnglish
      628·
      8 months ago

      It’s just hilarious that the US will bomb Nordstream and push Europe into crisis, whilst resisting any action that might raise their oil prices in the election year.

      Just so one-sided it’s incredible.

      • rinze@infosec.pubOPEnglish
        141·
        8 months ago

        It’s not yet proven that it was the US, no? I mean, I wouldn’t be surprised at all, but I still don’t know that’s a fact.

          • brainrein@feddit.deEnglish
            21·
            8 months ago

            You mean like all the other conspiracy theories about the USA?

            That they secretly made a weapons deal with Iran to get money to support the Contras in Nicaragua for example. That they helped to kill democratically elected Allende and install the dictator Pinochet. That they staged a false flag operation to take over the Vietnam war from the French. That they helped take down democratically elected Mossadegh in Iran and install the Shah. That they produced false evidence as pretext to invade Irak. Two times. That they tried many times to assassinate Fidel Castro.

            Sorry, but things happening in the world matching American interests makes me suppose they did it. I am convinced they did it. I am old, I can’t wait 30 years for the archives to open till I blame somebody.

            They did it!

        • Justin@lemmy.jlh.nameEnglish
          5·
          8 months ago

          Most people suspect it was Ukraine, honestly. But there’s a bunch of people who will try to blame America every chance they get.

          • barsoap@lemm.eeEnglish
            1·
            8 months ago

            I have yet to see an argument of how Ukraine has the capability to do it: The explosions are consistent with two depth charges being put squarely on top of the pipelines. Not just dropped, that would’ve been less accurate. Those things are huge and heavy you’d either need a team of divers and lots of time, or a submarine. The number of actors with capability to do it that way isn’t exactly large, and Ukraine isn’t really on it. Germany and Russia certainly is, US – I doubt it. They’re not good at all at sneaky submarines and nothing goes past the Danes or through the Kiel channel without being detected while a medium-sneaky Russian sub could’ve done it as it’s already in the Baltic Sea, anyway.

            • Justin@lemmy.jlh.nameEnglish
              1·
              8 months ago

              Yeah thats a good point. It was mostly the newspapers here in Sweden saying that Ukraine was the top suspect. I believe they thought the charges were set with divers, no Submarine involved, but maybe there’s been more analysis since then.

      • brainrein@feddit.deEnglish
        2·
        8 months ago

        But that’s what Hegemons do, that’s how hegemony works, everything for yourself. No matter at what costs, the others are going to pay the price. What I consider ironic, that all the American people (the not so rich part of it) gets out of that status is feeling good for being a superpower.

        Which is exactly what the population of the Soviet Union was granted from their government. And they are supporting a war to regain that status.

        I can’t wait to watch the American empire to go down.