US Claims Russia Willing to Accept Bigger Discounts for Oil Contracts Amid G7 Price Cap Deal

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said on Friday that Moscow is ready to accept bigger discounts than it currently offers for oil contracts amid the newly announced price cap agreement by the Group of Seven (G7) nations.

"Reports show that Russia is already offering steep discounts as much as 30% and long-term contracts to some countries. This also demonstrates that Russia is planning to continue supplying its oil and willing to swallow bigger discounts," Jean-Pierre said. "A price cap will give more countries better leverage to strike bargain with deals with Russia."

The G7 finance ministers on Friday confirmed the group’s intention to introduce a price cap on Russian oil and ban sea transportation of oil unless it is bought at a limited price.

The group also said that it will develop "targeted mitigation mechanisms" to ensure that vulnerable countries will still have access to energy markets, including from Russia.

The decision to impose limits on prices for Russian oil was made unanimously at the online meeting of the G7 finance ministers and the heads of their central banks, Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Friday.

Shunichi said the goal of imposing a price cap is to limit Russia's income from energy sources and Japan believes the measure will be effective.

The price ceiling will take effect on December 5 for crude oil and on February 5, 2023, for refined products coming from Russia. The European Commission has already said that it would also make efforts to impose price cap on Russia's oil by December following the G7 decision.

On September 1, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak condemned the idea of imposing a price cap on Russian oil as absurd, warning that Moscow would not deliver oil and oil products to countries that support the decision.

Over the past several months, the sanctions imposed by the collective West on Russia in retaliation for its military operation in Ukraine has sent food and energy prices soaring, triggering record-high inflation in many countries.