Six people familiar with the matter said that the G7 and the European Union are negotiating to replace the price cap on Russian oil exports with a complete ban on shipping services to reduce oil revenues to fund Russia's conflict in Ukraine. Russia uses Western tankers to export more than one-third of its oil, mainly to India and other countries, and uses Western shipping services. Trade is mainly carried out through the fleets of EU maritime countries, including Greece, Cyprus, and Malta, and the ban will put an end to this trade. Another two-thirds of Russia's oil exports are carried out by a fleet of hundreds of tankers. These tankers operate outside of Western supervision and maritime standards and are known as “shadow fleets.” Russia will need to expand this fleet if the G7 and EU implement a ban on maritime services. Three of the six sources said the ban could be part of the next round of EU sanctions against Russia scheduled to be imposed in early 2026. Two of the six sources said the EU 27 would like to approve the ban along with the broader G7 agreement before proposing a package of bans.

Six people familiar with the matter said that the G7 and the European Union are negotiating to replace the price cap on Russian oil exports with a complete ban on shipping services to reduce oil revenues to fund Russia's conflict in Ukraine. Russia uses Western tankers to export more than one-third of its oil, mainly to India and other countries, and uses Western shipping services. Trade is mainly carried out through the fleets of EU maritime countries, including Greece, Cyprus, and Malta, and the ban will put an end to this trade. Another two-thirds of Russia's oil exports are carried out by a fleet of hundreds of tankers. These tankers operate outside of Western supervision and maritime standards and are known as “shadow fleets.” Russia will need to expand this fleet if the G7 and EU implement a ban on maritime services. Three of the six sources said the ban could be part of the next round of EU sanctions against Russia scheduled to be imposed in early 2026. Two of the six sources said the EU 27 would like to approve the ban along with the broader G7 agreement before proposing a package of bans.