Diesel fuel shortages expose Ukraine’s reliance on Russian, Belarus imports

When Russia’s state-owned Rosneft stopped on April 1 supplying diesel fuel — the lifeblood of an industrial economy — Ukraine was reminded about its continuous energy reliance on the belligerent neighbor and the inherent risks of this dependence.

The news coincided with an announcement that Belarus’s Mozyr refinery would reduce supplies to Ukraine by 37 percent due to scheduled maintenance that would last until June 15, energy traders told Reuters.