Summoned urgently to Brussels on Monday, the European energy ministers also mentioned a 6th package of sanctions including a gradual cessation of their oil purchases from Russia.
“We plead for an immediate embargo on oil and gas,” assured Polish Minister Anna Moskwa on her arrival for the meeting.
AFP
European energy ministers, summoned urgently to Brussels on Monday, sought a response to Gazprom’s decision to cut off gas to Poland and Bulgaria. They also mentioned a gradual cessation of their oil purchases as part of a 6th package of sanctions against Moscow.
Russia has responded to European sanctions against its central bank by imposing the obligation to open a ruble account for gas transactions. However, the contracts concluded by the European companies are denominated in euros or dollars. Poland and Bulgaria paid for their purchases in the target currency. In retaliation, the Russian gas company suspended its deliveries. Energy ministers must therefore examine the extent to which the opening of a second account to enable the conversion into rubles poses a problem with regard to the sanctions, since Gazprom delivers the gas, once payment has been received in euros or in dollars.
“We plead for an immediate embargo on oil and gas,” assured Polish Minister Anna Moskwa on her arrival for the meeting. The time has come for oil, then will come gas. Europe must get rid of dependence on Russian fossil fuels.” Polish gas reserves “will be at 100% of their capacity for this winter”, American LNG (liquefied natural gas) “has started to arrive via Lithuania and we will be supplied with gas from Norway via Denmark”, a- she explained.
The new sanctions will be discussed later
Ministers must also agree on a gradual cessation of purchases of Russian oil and petroleum products in order to dry up European funding for the war led by the Kremlin in Ukraine. But no decision is expected at the end of their meeting, said French Minister Barbara Pompili, chair of the meeting. “A new sanctions package is in preparation, but this will not be the subject of this Energy Council. He will come in the coming days,” she explained. “The question of sanctions is not the competence of the energy ministers, but falls under Foreign Affairs”, recalled, for her part, the Spanish Minister Teresa Ribera.
Embargo, but not too much
“We have considerably reduced our dependence on Russian oil and we have created the necessary conditions to be able to support an embargo as well,” assured his German counterpart Robert Habeck. In 2021, Russia supplied 30% of crude oil and 15% of petroleum products purchased by the EU.
“We are not asking for an immediate embargo on all imports of fossil fuels, because (we know) that we could not last a single month,” Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Monday in Berlin. The main importers of fossil fuels from Russia (gas, crude oil, petroleum products and coal) are Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and France.
(AFP)