Ukrainian economist and President of Kyiv School of Economics, Tymofiy Mylovanov, reported Thursday: “Ukraine has (again!) hit two oil refineries in Russia. While this is great for Ukraine, the U.S. is concerned about attacks rising the world price of oil. This argument is silly. These attacks will force Russia to export more, not less, and the data supports this.”
Mylovanov employed what he referred to as an Econ 101 argument: “if Russia can’t refine oil into diesel and petrol domestically, it’s stuck with oil. So, it will export it!”
Do it. do it, do it! https://t.co/eRM0KrhytZ
— Gen Michael Hayden (@GenMhayden) May 10, 2024
Mylovanov encouraged his English-reading followers to read the recently released Foreign Affairs article ‘Why Ukraine Should Keep Striking Russian Oil Refineries,’ by Michael Liebreich, Lauri Myllyvirta, and Sam Winter-Levy.
The professor said of the journalists behind the article: “The data supports them. Russia is exporting more crude, while its refined exports have hit near-historic lows.”
Mylovanov acknowledges that some “experts have finally begun to come to the conclusion that these attacks are not leading to higher oil prices,” but also complains that “Many people, including the U.S. officials, specific Secretary Austin, have criticized Ukraine targeting of refineries, arguing that there are other, better, more important targets.”
Note: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned last week that Ukraine’s recent attacks on Russian oil refineries “risk impacting global energy markets and urged the country to focus on military targets instead.”
Retired U.S. Air Force General and former Director of the NSA and the CIA, Michael Hayden — who is accustomed to giving direct orders — agrees with Mylovanov’s take on hitting Russian refineries and wrote: “Do it. do it, do it!”