Serbia hired the American lobbying firm Blacksmith Capital because of the sanctions against NIS. The agreement with this company will be signed soon. Blacksmith will help Serbia with “alignment with sanctions which were recently introduced in connection with the energy sector,” states the document of the US Department of Justice, writes Filip Rudić for The New Economy. Serbia is represented in this agreement by the cabinet of President Aleksandar Vučić and the Ministry of Finance.
Serbia enlisted the American lobbying company Blacksmith Capital due to the sanctions imposed on NIS. The agreement with this firm is set to be signed soon. Blacksmith will assist Serbia in “aligning with sanctions recently introduced in relation to the energy sector,” according to a document from the US Department of Justice, as reported by Filip Rudić for The New Economy. Serbia is represented in this deal by the cabinet of President Aleksandar Vučić and the Ministry of Finance.
Ivica Kojić, chief of staff to the President of Serbia, is identified as the official through whom Blacksmith was employed, according to the document. “Blexamite’s engagement with the Republic of Serbia was agreed upon orally. A formal written contract is expected to be signed in the near future,” the document states.
There are no reports as to whether such a contract has been signed. The document also states that Blacksmith will “participate in political activities” to help Serbia adhere to the sanctions, states NE.
Srbijagas’ CEO said that Serbian oil company NIS, whose majority shareholder is Russian Gazprom Neft and Gazprom, applied a second time to the U.S. for a sanctions waiver. Sanctions can lead to reduced crude supply for NIS, which has only one oil refinery in Serbia with a yearly capacity of 4.8 million tons that provides the majority of the needs of the Balkan nation.
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Russia’s oil industry on January 10, with 45 days to sell stakes in NIS granted to Gazprom Neft. “Their attorneys have informed OFAC they are seeking to be delisted from the sanctions list,” declared Srbijagas CEO Dusan Bajatovic to the RTS public broadcaster. Srbijagas is also in a partnership with Gazprom.
Following NIS’s first request for a sanctions waiver on February 4, OFAC extended the sanctions by 30 days on February 27 to give the company time to negotiate a resolution with the Russian firms. On February 26, Gazprom Neft transferred approximately 5.15% of its stake in NIS to Gazprom as a strategy to avoid sanctions. Bajatovic stated that this action should have been adequate to guarantee the lifting of the sanctions.
The adjustments indicate that Gazprom Neft no longer holds an absolute majority in NIS. This follows a comparable situation in 2022, when the company evaded EU sanctions related to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. However, it remained uncertain if a similar action would appease U.S. regulators.
