Europeans are boasting about plans for a greater role in aiding Ukraine in its war with Russia and taking on their own security, but they continue to drink down Russian oil as they may be allowing their own militaries to become weak and severely depleted.
In the fallout from the Oval Office fracas between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European countries led by France and the United Kingdom have proposed unilaterally shouldering a greater defense burden and supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia.
However, despite supposedly hard-hitting sanctions and tough talk towards Russia, Europe’s lack of adherence when it comes to Russia’s energy industry is mismatched with its rhetoric. A recent study found that Europe’s purchases of Russian oil and gas in 2024 eclipsed its total financial aid to Ukraine that same year.
“Purchasing Russian fossil fuels is, quite plainly, akin to sending financial aid to the Kremlin and enabling its invasion. [It’s] a practice that must stop immediately to secure not just Ukraine’s future, but also Europe’s energy security,” Vaibhav Raghunandan, an analyst at Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air, the think-tank that authored the recent report on Europe’s imports of Russian oil and gas, told The Guardian.
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In the fallout from the Oval Office fracas between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, European countries led by France and the United Kingdom have proposed unilaterally shouldering a greater defense burden and supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia.
However, despite supposedly hard-hitting sanctions and tough talk towards Russia, Europe’s lack of adherence when it comes to Russia’s energy industry is mismatched with its rhetoric. A recent study found that Europe’s purchases of Russian oil and gas in 2024 eclipsed its total financial aid to Ukraine that same year.
“Purchasing Russian fossil fuels is, quite plainly, akin to sending financial aid to the Kremlin and enabling its invasion. [It’s] a practice that must stop immediately to secure not just Ukraine’s future, but also Europe’s energy security,” Vaibhav Raghunandan, an analyst at Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air, the think-tank that authored the recent report on Europe’s imports of Russian oil and gas, told The Guardian.
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Europeans are fueling Russia’s war effort through gas purchases while militaries wither
Europe’s tough talk on defending Ukraine contrasts with Russian oil purchases and faltering military forces.
