A.Martinos: “If Greek shipowners had not transported Russian oil, prices would have doubled”

One of the largest Greek shipowners, A. Martinos, said this “through gritted teeth” and made it clear that “if Greek shipowners had not transported Russian oil, prices would have been twice as high“

Speaking at the 5th Athens Triennial Meeting, he even added that “9/10 of the world refrains from sanctions against Russia.” In essence, the Greek shipowner expressed the question that arises in almost every logical thinking person: Why is Greece involved in these sanctions that are costly to its economy?

These sanctions serve the interests of other countries, primarily the United States. This was repeatedly pointed out by the publication “Athens News” in in his articles during the war between Russia and Ukraine. In addition, the United States itself buys Russian oil at a price imposed on them, and then resells it at a higher price and makes a profit from it.

France has repeatedly increased imports of Russian gas in the form of LNG, which, in turn, also resells to other countries, making large profits, since Russian gas is the cheapest circulating on the world market.

Russia ultimately benefited from the sanctions imposed on it and as a result has a very strong wartime economy, in contrast to Western economies which are in decline.

As for the United States, they received excess profits from the sale of their own very expensive LNG. EU and USA declared war on Greek shipowners for transporting Russian oilbut what they were really worried about was the huge profits of Greek shipping.

“Geopolitical crises show the importance and geostrategic value of the Greek merchant fleet. There is criticism that Greek shipowners financed Putin's war in Ukraine by transporting Russian oil. Russia is a major exporter of goods, and the countries that have not imposed sanctions against it make up 9/10 of the world's population. Countries such as China, India, Pakistan, Indonesia and others willingly buy Russian goods, replacing them with the European market. By transporting non-sanctioned Russian goods such as grain, fertilizer, coal and oil, we primarily benefited consumers, especially in less developed countriesnoted Dr. Athanasios Martinos, revealing the real dimension of the problem. – The question is where would oil prices have skyrocketed after the Ukrainian crisis in 2022 if there had not been Greek tankers to transport Russian oil. They would probably double without our oil-carrying ships.”

That is why the United States recognized that this oil is transported under certain conditions and at certain prices. Wishing an end to the war in Ukraine “between fraternal peoples, as he put it, A. Martinos referred to the fact that “Another destructive war has been going on in the Middle East for a year now. A war that also affects global shipping. Israel's war against Hamas and Hezbollah. Hezbollah's allies Houthis they actually blocked the crossing of the Red Sea.”

As a result, he noted, freight rates have increased significantly, especially for container ships: after the closure of the Red Sea, prices for transporting one container tripled. Tariffs have also increased for LR2 tankers carrying petroleum products and large capesize tankers. The Greek shipowner made a forecast regarding the situation in the Red Sea:

“It is doubtful that the Houthi intervention will end if there is a ceasefire in the Middle East. The Houthis' goal is to attract attention and gain recognition from the international community.” AND in conclusion he said:“The Red Sea is not expected to reopen anytime soon, which is good for the shipping market.”.

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