Energy security comes first for Indonesia as it defies EU over Russian oil

Energy security comes first for Indonesia as it defies EU over Russian oilIndonesia’s Karimun is the first non-Russian oil terminal to be sanctioned by Brussels since the start of the Ukraine war in 20223-MIN READ3-MIN1ListenPublished: 7:00pm, 28 Apr 2026Jakarta’s move to press on with importing 150 million barrels of Russian oil despite latest EU sanctions against an Indonesian port underscores a growing divide between Western efforts to isolate Moscow and Asia’s push for energy security.On Thursday, the European Commission announced its 20th package of sanctions against Russia, which includes Indonesia’s Karimun Oil Terminal for its “connections with the shadow fleet and circumvention of the oil price cap”.The sanction on Karimun, located in a free-trade zone island some 30km (19 miles) southwest of Singapore, is the first time that a non-Russian oil terminal has been sanctioned by Brussels since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.Select VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x