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According to the

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-presidents-daily-brief/id1617887885?i=1000650599829

Russia is ignoring the UN sanctions and shipping directly to North Korea

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They might be shipping some, but there is a finite capacity to the Pacific terminals, and most of that capacity is China bound. Which means that North Korea is getting supplied either minimally or the oil is coming from one of Russia's western ports. That's an expensive route.

Also, North Korea is constantly struggling for foreign currency. Russia I am sure worked out a barter relationship for munitions for the war in Ukraine, but that still leaves Russia without hard currency for international transactions. Right now Russia is using the yuan to settle international trade, but with the yuan's recent devaluation that's problematic.

Russia is surviving the sanctions, but they are still isolated from much of the global economy. Exactly how this plays out over the rest of the decade nobody knows.

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Mar 30Liked by Peter Nayland Kust

None of the despicable regimes or conflicts appear to be changing course or ending anytime soon.

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No, they do not. Not sure how it all ends, but I am thinking it will not end well

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Agreed.

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Mar 27Liked by Peter Nayland Kust

Sundance (The Last Refuge) says that the Russian sanctions are hurting the West far more than they are hurting Russia.

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Yes and no. I can see them having a significant impact on Europe, but US oil production has actually benefited from them.

The real question is what are the sanctions' long term effects on Russia trade with the West. Russia's oil pipeline infrastructure is highly Eurocentric, and it will be that way until 2030 at the very least, and quite possibly well past 2035. If Russia does not restore its trade relationships with Europe selling its oil is going to involve much more expensive trade routes. That is a permanent drag on their economy.

Another question is can Russia sustain its oil production infrastructure without Western technical expertise? Peter Zeihan actively promotes a narrative that it does not, and there have been some indications that Russia may have a time ramping up production in some of its shuttered oil fields.

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