Sharjah24 - Reuters: Japan will take time to phase out Russian oil imports after agreeing on a ban with other Group of Seven (G7) nations to counter Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday.
The G7 nations committed to the move "in a timely and orderly fashion" at an online meeting on Sunday to put further pressure on President Vladimir Putin, although members such as resource-poor Japan depend heavily on Russian fuel.
"For a country heavily dependent on energy imports, it's a very difficult decision. But G7 coordination is most important at a time like now," Kishida told reporters, repeating comments he made at the G7 meeting.
"As for the timing of the reduction or stoppage of (Russian) oil imports, we will consider it while gauging the actual situation," he said. "We will take our time to take steps towards a phase-out." He did not elaborate.
There have been no ships loading Russian oil for Japan since mid-April, according to Refinitiv data. About 1.9 million barrels were exported from Russia to Japan in April, 33% down from the same month a year ago.
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