Crimea halts all public gasoline sales, restricts fuel to government agencies
All gas stations in Crimea have completely stopped selling fuel, both for general sale and on ration coupons, announced Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-installed head of the peninsula.
Gasoline sales were halted as of 9 a.m. on June 21. “Fuel will be dispensed only to government agencies that maintain the functioning and security of the Republic of Crimea,” Aksyonov said.
Crimea began facing a gasoline shortage in late spring, a result of Ukrainian strikes on fuel tankers and cargo trucks supplying the annexed peninsula along the R-280 “Novorossiya” highway. On June 6, the TES network of gas stations in Sevastopol introduced QR codes for obtaining gasoline coupons (each entitled the holder to buy 20 liters — about 5.3 gallons). The codes could be obtained only once a week and only through the Max messenger app. Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Russian-installed governor of Sevastopol, said the codes were claimed “literally within a few dozen seconds.”
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