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The European Union is urging its member states to consider reducing their gas consumption by 15% in the coming months as the bloc prepares for the possibility of Russia cutting off natural gas supplies over the winter.
“Russia is blackmailing us. Russia uses energy as a weapon. And that is why Europe must be ready in any case, whether it is a partial major Russian gas disruption or a complete Russian gas disruption,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a media conference on Wednesday.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, left, and European Green Deal Commissioner Frans Timmermans address a media conference at the EU headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday, July 20, 2022. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo/AP Newsroom)
While the initial cuts would be voluntary, the commission also asked for the power to impose mandatory cuts across the bloc in the event of an EU-wide emergency caused by von der Leyen as a deliberate attempt by Russian President Vladimir Putin to arm gas exports enforce.
“We have to be proactive. We must prepare for a possible total disruption of Russian gas. And that’s a likely scenario. We’ve seen that in the past,” von der Leyen said, adding that Kremlin-controlled Gazprom has shown little interest in market forces, instead playing a political game to stall the EU.
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The European Commission has signaled that its proposed target of saving 15% on gas consumption by next March would require EU countries as a whole to triple rationing achieved so far since the Russian invasion of Ukraine on March 24. February began.
EU economic forecasts last week showed Russia’s war in Ukraine is likely to have a devastating impact on the economic recovery for the foreseeable future, with lower annual growth and record-high inflation. Disruptions in Russia’s energy trading threaten to trigger a recession in the bloc just as it recovers from a pandemic-related slump
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, the EU has approved bans on Russian coal and most oil, due to come into effect later this year, but natural gas has not been included as the 27-nation bloc relies on gas, to power factories, generate electricity and heat homes. Now von der Leyen is convinced that Putin will turn off the gas anyway to try to wreak economic and political havoc in Europe this winter.
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“Putin is trying to push us around this winter and he will fail dramatically if we stick together,” von der Leyen said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.