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Australia’s ‘mateship’ package for Ukraine has been praised, but questions remain over sanctions
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Australia’s ‘mateship’ package for Ukraine has been praised, but questions remain over sanctions

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Australia’s latest sanctions against Russia’s ‘shadow fleet’ are symbolic and still lag behind measures taken by the European Union and the United Kingdom, an expert says, despite praise from Ukraine’s ambassador.
The $95 million aid package brings Australia’s total support to Ukraine to $1.7 billion since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Defense Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a joint statement on Thursday.
Ministers also announced targeted sanctions on another 45 Russian “shadow fleet” ships – tankers that carried Russian crude oil to countries such as India and China, where it is refined and resold to markets such as Australia.
The addition of 45 new ships brings the total number of sanctioned shadow fleet vessels to 200, Thursday’s joint statement said.

Call for more action against indirect oil imports

Wong said the latest sanctions were “part of a coordinated effort to starve Russia’s oil revenues and limit its ability to finance its invasion.”
However, Anton Moiseienko, a senior law lecturer at the Australian National University, told SBS News that the sanctions would not meaningfully limit Russia’s oil revenues.

While Wong emphasized that “Australian direct imports of Russian energy products have fallen from $80 million before the Russian invasion to zero,” Moiseienko said direct imports were only part of a much bigger picture.

Unlike the EU and UK, Australia has not banned indirect purchasing, and until similar restrictions were passed, Moiseienko said his actions would remain “largely symbolic”.
“Australia is in a very uncomfortable position as one of the most important countries in the world [imposing] those sanctions,” he said.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, said while the additional shadow fleet sanctions were welcome, more needed to be done – including restrictions on companies or countries that still allow Russia to sell its oil.

“If we can limit Russia’s ability to make money from it [oil and gas]“Will we be able to starve their economy and deprive them of the opportunity to produce more weapons to kill Ukrainians,” he told SBS News.

Greens spokesman David Shoebridge called on the federal government to impose further sanctions on Russian oil imports.

“Australia must make it clear that no oil originating from Russia, whether flushed through a refinery in India or not, can be sold to Australia,” he said.

Ukraine Ambassador Praises ‘True Act of Camaraderie’

In Thursday’s joint statement, Marles said Australia is “unwavering in its support for Ukraine.”
“These commitments will make a tangible difference in defending Ukraine against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion,” he said.
These comments were echoed by Myroshnychenko, who said the federal government’s package was a “tangible contribution” to his country’s war effort.

He thanked Marles and Wong and told SBS News that the latest package was a “real act of camaraderie”.

“Australia remains the largest…military contributor…outside of NATO, for which we are grateful,” he told SBS News.
He said the funds from the package would be used to purchase ammunition and missiles from the United States, which would save Ukrainian lives.
Of the $95 million announced Thursday, $50 million will go to the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List, an initiative of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to provide Ukraine with critical military equipment.

Australian Defense Force supplies and weapons worth $43 million will also be donated, including tactical air defense radars, ammunition and combat engineering equipment.

An additional $2 million will be allocated to help Ukraine with advanced drone technologies.
Australia has also imposed targeted financial sanctions and travel bans on more than 1,180 people people and 293 entities.
The coalition welcomed the latest support package, but said it was “long overdue” and a “drop in the bucket” compared to Australia’s $56 billion defense budget.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said military support to Ukraine is about supporting the “brave Ukrainian people” to stand up to “unacceptable Russian brutality and aggression.”

“The end of this war cannot come soon enough, but it must be a lasting peace that does justice to the courage shown by the Ukrainians,” he told ABC RN on Thursday morning.

The announcement comes during a new round of peace talks aimed at ending the war.
However, the further path for the peace talks in Ukraine is unclear, US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, after what he previously described as “pretty good” talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US envoys.
A meeting between the White House and Ukrainian officials is scheduled for Thursday.
— Additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.

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