INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
of a Western price cap on Russian crude, Bloomberg reported Thursday.Shipping data compiled by the news agency showed 26 tankers with more
started requesting proof of insurance from tankers loaded with Russian crude oil this week after the EU, G7 and Australia imposed a
bound for the European Union, Bloomberg said.The Kremlin has said it would not recognize the Western price cap and was working on response
measures.A 1936 treaty guarantees the freedom of navigation to merchant vessels passing through Turkey's Bosphorus and Dardanelles
spillage and other accidents.The TankerTracker.com industry monitor said early Wednesday that Russian seaborne crude oil exports had halved
in the past 48 hours.The Financial Timesreported Tuesday that Russia has assembled a separate "shadow fleet" of more than 100 vessels in an
effort to circumnavigate the Western sanctions regime.These ships are reportedly using non-Western insurers and selling oil at higher prices
to countries that have not subscribed to the new sanctions.FT, citing an unnamed oil industry figure, said that Turkey was waving through
these ships but holding up the ones with Western insurance coverage.AFP contributed reporting.
