Ditching Russian energy is a failed venture for EU, Zakharova tells RT

The bloc is realizing that it cannot completely wean itself from Russian gas, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman says

The EU continues to rely heavily on Russian gas even as it’s pledging to stop buying and using its eastern neighbor’s fuel by 2027, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has told RT, speaking on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on Tuesday.

Zakharova accused the 27-member EU of hypocrisy, saying all the bloc’s claims of cutting the inflow of Russian gas are mere “wordplay.”

“They can play with words as much as they like... But there’s no escaping the facts and reality. To remain without energy sources is simply to cross out their own development agenda for ten years ahead.”

“It is clear that every country wants to have alternative sources of energy to ensure its independence and sovereignty. But the fact is that they cannot completely give up Russian energy at this stage – and they realize it,” Zakharova stated.

She noted that most of Brussels’ statements regarding Russian energy are made for show, while the fact remains – the EU is still dependent on Russian energy even as it secures alternative sources in Africa and Asia.

“When they get away from the microphones and get off their podiums and are in dialog with their companies, they see the calculations [and] can do the math themselves,” Zakharova said.

The spokeswoman noted also that, in her opinion, the entire idea of weaning the EU off Russian energy is not of their own making.

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“These experiments of Western Europe are not their own – they are experiments that were performed on them by Washington, which resulted in driving EU companies and all their financial donations to other continents, to the US and other countries,” she said, referring to a number of EU businesses that have relocated over the past several months to escape soaring energy costs.

According to findings published by NGO Global Witness in late August, members of the bloc imported 52% of all Russian LNG exports between January and July. Recent data from Eurostat revealed a similar picture, showing that Russia was the EU’s second-largest supplier of LNG in the first quarter of 2023, behind the US but ahead of Qatar, Algeria, Norway, and Nigeria.

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