President of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić stated that US sanctions against the Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS) is postponed for one week. Sanctions will take effect on 8-9 October.
NIS ended up on the sanctions list at the start of this year due to the Russian majority ownership stake in the company, which dates back to 2008. Russia has reportedly refused to sell part of its shares in the company so that the sanctions can be avoided.
So far this year, the full implementation of sanctions against the company NIS has been postponed six times based on special licenses issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of the Treasury.
Speaking from New York, Vučić emphasized that Serbia, in the case of NIS, is collateral damage of the current relations between America, the West, and Russia.
“We will pay a high price because the Russians are the majority owners of NIS. To be absolutely clear to all our citizens – we have been extremely fair to both our Russian and American partners. We will strive to remain fair, but people must understand that we will pay a very high price,” Vučić said.
The Petroleum Industry of Serbia (NIS) stated that it currently has sufficient reserves of crude oil for processing and adequate quantities of petroleum products.
The company emphasised that it respects the laws of Serbia and other countries where it operates, and that its business activities have not contributed to the imposition of sanctions that now threaten its operations and the social stability of over 13,000 employees.
