By Jennifer Sieg
Global commodity trading giant Glencore purchased thousands of tonnes of Russian copper that were traded through Turkey to Italy in July.
Some 5,000 tonnes of copper made by Russia’s Ural Mining and Metallurgical Company (UMMC) was sold by UAE-based entity Haldivor Energy and purchased by Glencore, which were exported through Turkey to Italy’s Livorno port, the Financial Times reported.
Blanket sanctions on purchasing Russian metals currently don’t exist but there are restrictions on buying from specific producers and oligarchs.
For UMMC, the UK and EU have only placed sanctions on executives, not the company itself.
While the trade did not appear to breach any sanctions, the trades highlight Europe’s dependency on Russia for critical commodities.
A spokesperson for Glencore said: “This transaction represents the final part of a contract that was in place before the war in Ukraine broke out and is in line with our policy regarding Russian business activities that was put in place at the end of March 2022.
“Glencore has undertaken no new business with UMMC since the outbreak of the war.”
