March 02, 2023

An End to Friendship


An End to Friendship
Construction of the Druzhba pipeline in Zsámbok, Hungary, 1972. Urbán Tamás, Wikimedia Commons.

On February 25, a day after the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russian oil company Transneft suspended the supply of crude oil to Poland's largest oil company, PKN Orlen.

The Druzhba ("Friendship") pipeline, one of the world's longest, carries oil from Eastern Russia to much of Europe, including Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Germany. 

The contract between Transneft and PKN Orlen was set to expire in December 2024. Transneft did not give a reason for its suspension, but the action came one day after Poland dispatched its first Leopard tanks to Ukraine

PKN Orlen said they expected this to happen, but said the suspension will not affect Polish consumers. Poland intends to end Russian oil imports entirely, but it requires EU sanctions on oil imports to cancel their remaining contract with a Russian supplier. "Only 10% of crude oil has been coming from Russia, and we will replace it with oil from other sources," PKN Orlen's CEO Daniel Obajtek wrote on Twitter.

According to Radio Svoboda, PKN Orlen currently receives oil sourced from the North Sea, West Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Persian and Mexican Gulfs. 

You Might Also Like

Index of War
  • January 28, 2023

Index of War

Fact and figures related to Russia's War on Ukraine.
A Most Important Import
  • June 06, 2022

A Most Important Import

Saudi Arabia has agreed to increase oil production as demand for Russian oil takes a hit.
Huawei Slinks Out
  • April 15, 2022

Huawei Slinks Out

Russia's international economic isolation continues as Chinese telecoms giant Huawei moves to leave the country.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Murder and the Muse

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

Life Stories: Original Fiction By Russian Authors

The Life Stories collection is a nice introduction to contemporary Russian fiction: many of the 19 authors featured here have won major Russian literary prizes and/or become bestsellers. These are life-affirming stories of love, family, hope, rebirth, mystery and imagination, masterfully translated by some of the best Russian-English translators working today. The selections reassert the power of Russian literature to affect readers of all cultures in profound and lasting ways. Best of all, 100% of the profits from the sale of this book are going to benefit Russian hospice—not-for-profit care for fellow human beings who are nearing the end of their own life stories.
Driving Down Russia's Spine

Driving Down Russia's Spine

The story of the epic Spine of Russia trip, intertwining fascinating subject profiles with digressions into historical and cultural themes relevant to understanding modern Russia. 
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

The Little Humpbacked Horse (bilingual)

A beloved Russian classic about a resourceful Russian peasant, Vanya, and his miracle-working horse, who together undergo various trials, exploits and adventures at the whim of a laughable tsar, told in rich, narrative poetry.
The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955