Germany's gas dependency blamed on Russia: German FM

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
6 Sep 2022 19:29
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German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock blamed Russia for Germany's dependency on Russian Gas and said the EU does not plan to lift the sanctions.

The EU does not intend to lift the sanctions on Russia and Germany blames the latter for Berlin's dependency on Russian gas (Photo: Reuters)

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Tuesday that the European Union does not plan to lift sanctions on Russia due to the current energy crisis tied to the suspension of gas deliveries.

During a speech delivered on the occasion of the business day of the 20th Conference of Heads of German Missions Abroad, Baerbock said that Berlin opposes a total embargo on Russian gas and oil as the country cannot abandon Russian fossil energy resources in one day.

"We do not want to repeat the mistakes made by Germany in the past and do not promise things that we cannot deliver. That is why we said that we cannot abandon fossil energy from Russia from one day to the next," Baerbock said during an event at the German foreign ministry.

Baerbock added that Germany has never received "cheap gas" from Russia, adding the country paid for it at the expense of its national security.

"In fact, we have never received cheap gas from Russia. The market price may have been advantageous at times, but it led to a blind dependency or exchange of infrastructures that was actually a security risk. We paid for every cubic meter of Russian gas double and triple at the expense of our national security," she said in her speech.

In other words, Germany is blaming Russia for developing a dependency on Russian gas.

"The Kremlin believes that it now occupies a more advantageous position. We see this in increasingly overt blackmail attempts. Recently, these were baseless technical reasons [the situation around the Nord Stream gas pipeline's turbine], now ... they oppose our sanctions [against Russia] in general, which allegedly hinder further gas supplies. We must make it clear that we will not succumb to this blackmail," Baerbock said.

Rede von Außenministerin Annalena Baerbock anlässlich des Wirtschaftstags der 20. Konferenz der Leiterinnen und Leiter deutscher Auslandsvertretungen https://t.co/ejAk0bvXuY
— Auswärtiges Amt (@AuswaertigesAmt) September 6, 2022

The temporary halt of gas flows in the Nord Stream pipeline has been frequent since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine began in February.

Since the G7 agreed on imposing a price cap on Russian oil on September 2, the flow of gas has completely stopped, although Gazprom has reported that this was a temporary maintenance issue.

Russia has indeed stated that it will stop exporting Russian oil to European states that are applying the decision.

Germany stands among the most exposed to a gas supply shock due to its extensive use of natural gas and significant reliance on Russia.

The consecutive sanctions against Moscow prompted a race against the clock to diminish Germany's reliance on Russian gas before winter. Groceries and food are other sectors experiencing the aftermath of soaring inflation which saw prices surge 12% in June before reaching 16.6% in August.

The government has recently approved a $64.7 billion relief package which includes continued cheaper public transport and tax breaks for energy-reliant companies, as they have been affected the most by the biggest surge in prices.