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Foreign Affairs
Related: About this forumAbsolute Disaster for Kremlin: Russia Just Lost Billions in Oil Revenue. Putin Got Humiliated - The Russian Dude
Last edited Fri Jan 9, 2026, 01:45 PM - Edit history (1)
What just happened to Russias oil exports is a nightmare scenario for the Kremlin and a public humiliation for Vladimir Putin. The United States has physically seized Russian-flagged oil tankers from Moscows so-called shadow fleet, cutting directly into Russias oil revenue and exposing how fragile Putins sanctions-evasion strategy really is. This wasnt about paperwork, frozen accounts, or symbolic sanctions U.S. forces boarded the ships, detained the crews, and took control while Russian warships stood by and did absolutely nothing. One tanker tried to flee, reflagged mid-chase, changed its name, and was even escorted by Russian naval vessels, yet was still seized in international waters without resistance. The message was brutal and unmistakable: Russias shadow fleet is no longer untouchable, and Putins claim that sanctions dont work has collapsed in real time.
For years, the Kremlin relied on aging tankers, fake flags, and murky insurance schemes to keep Russian oil flowing despite Western sanctions, betting that enforcement would never go beyond words. That gamble has now backfired spectacularly. The seizure of these tankers shows that when the United States decides to enforce the rules physically, Moscow has no credible response. Putin cant escalate militarily, cant retaliate symmetrically, and cant appeal to international law after openly violating it for years. The result is silence the loudest admission of weakness possible. Billions in oil revenue are at risk, Russias most important export is exposed, and the illusion of Putin as a geopolitical mastermind has taken a serious hit.
This moment marks a major shift in global power dynamics. Russia wanted a lawless system where strength alone decides outcomes, but when a stronger power entered that same arena, the Kremlin was completely outmatched. The seizure of Russian oil tankers isnt just an economic blow; its a psychological one that shows the limits of Putins strategy, the vulnerability of Russias shadow fleet, and the growing effectiveness of sanctions enforcement. As Russias war economy struggles and oil income comes under direct threat, the consequences of defying the global system are finally catching up with the Kremlin and this time, theres no speech, no escalation, and no escape.
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Absolute Disaster for Kremlin: Russia Just Lost Billions in Oil Revenue. Putin Got Humiliated - The Russian Dude (Original Post)
TexasTowelie
16 hrs ago
OP
Perhaps Pooty Poo might consider leaking his copy of the EPSTEIN FILES!
PuraVidaDreamin
15 hrs ago
#1
You're welcome and thanks for letting me know that I pasted the text twice.
TexasTowelie
8 hrs ago
#4
PuraVidaDreamin
(4,454 posts)1. Perhaps Pooty Poo might consider leaking his copy of the EPSTEIN FILES!
And any of the other kompromat he has on that orange menace.
jmbar2
(7,639 posts)2. Thanks for a great summary!
So Trump accidentally did something good. (Note: text is pasted in twice).
TexasTowelie
(125,518 posts)4. You're welcome and thanks for letting me know that I pasted the text twice.
I went to bed a few minutes later which is why I didn't catch my mistake. I'll edit the OP.
brer cat
(27,360 posts)3. K&R