Stop imports from Russia
Baerbock admits mistakes in energy policy
4/20/2022, 8:28 p.m
During her visit to the Balkans, Annalena Baerbock finds clear words. Not only does she promise Ukraine military support. The Federal Foreign Minister also acknowledges mistakes in energy policy. Dependence on Russia must be reduced.
During her visit to the Baltic States, Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock admitted that Germany had made mistakes in dealing with energy supplies from Russia. “What we need to do more than ever is to end our energy imports from Russia once and for all,” Baerbock said at a meeting with her colleagues from the three Baltic republics of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania in Riga.
“We made mistakes in this area, but we cannot turn back the clock now, we cannot undo what happened,” said the Foreign Minister. Security in Europe means reducing dependence on Russia, especially in the energy sector.
“Want to phase out gas supplies”
“We all want to let the gas supplies run out, better today than tomorrow,” said Baerbock, certifying that the Baltic states had pursued a policy at an early stage that largely reduced dependence on Russian gas. “Germany would also like to say goodbye to energy imports from Russia completely,” said Baerbock.
The government in Kyiv accuses Germany of financing the Russian war against Ukraine by importing oil, gas and coal. The EU countries had already decided on a coal embargo against Russia last week. By the end of the year, Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck also believes it is possible to be “virtually independent” of Russian oil. In the case of gas, his ministry only considers this possible “until mid-2024”.