EC: EU stopped coal purchases from Russia and reduced oil imports by 90 percent

BRUSSELS, February 16 – RIA Novosti. The European Union stopped buying coal from Russia and reduced oil imports from Russia by 90 percent. twitter Kadri Simson, European Commissioner for Energy.

In early April, the EU adopted the fifth package of sanctions against Russia. It includes a ban on the import of all types of Russian coal, according to a press release from the European Commission on April 8. In December, a ban was imposed on the import of certain oils, and in February of petroleum products from Russia.

The European Union did not impose a ban on the purchase of pipeline gas from the Russian Federation, but pipeline exports to Europe decreased due to European refusal to import Russian gas and problems with the export infrastructure in the main directions. In 2022, deliveries to Europe stopped along both the main (North Stream) and balancing route (Yamal-Europe) and nearly tripled through Ukraine’s gas transmission system.

Also last spring, the European Commission created the REPowerEU plan, which aims to reduce the EU’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels.

The West has increased the pressure on Russia through Ukraine, which has led to higher electricity, fuel and food prices in Europe and the United States. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that cheap and reliable Russian energy sources are a competitive advantage for Europe, and even their partial rejection has already had a negative impact on its economy and residents. And the US forcing the EU to completely reject Russian energy carriers and other sources has led to the deindustrialization of Europe, he said.