Russia has launched the Vostok Oil project in Taimyr, its largest oil project since the Soviet era. With a projected capacity of up to 2 million barrels per day, Moscow is seeking to increase oil supplies to China and other Asian markets.

The timing is significant. Amid the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz and disruptions to global oil supplies, Russia is attempting to use the situation to strengthen its position in the Asian market, offering China additional volumes of crude and increasing Beijing’s dependence on Russian oil.