Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has announced that his country has agreed a ban on Russian oil imports with other G7 nations, but will take time in reducing purchases to ensure there are no disruptions to Japan’s energy supplies.
Several leading G7 nations have been pushing for a ban on Russian oil imports to put pressure on Vladimir Putin following the invasion of Ukraine. As a resource-poor nation though, Japan has been one of the leading members of the group to question the feasibility of such a measure.
Ultimately though Kishida seems to have decided that a collective response is more important at a tie of growing global uncertainty.
“For a country heavily dependent on energy imports, it’s a very difficult decision. But G7 coordination is most important at a time like now,” the prime minister told reporters at a news conference.
“As for the timing of the reduction or stoppage of oil imports, we will consider it while gauging the actual situation,” he said, adding that Japan “will take our time to take steps towards a phase-out.”
Japan has already been taking steps to reduce its dependence on Russian oil, with imports in April down 33% from the same period in 2021. Only 4% of Japan’s total oil imports came from Russia in 2021, but the country has warned it will face difficulties in replacing the supply of approximately 33 million barrels immediately.
The Japanese government has already agreed to ban Russian coal imports, but again will do so in stages. Japan is particularly dependent on coal imports following the closure of most of its nuclear reactors in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima disaster.