EU threatened with complete halt of Russian gas supplies
Moscow would halt its gas supplies to the European Union altogether should the bloc impose a price cap on Russian fossil fuel, Dmitry Medvedev, who served as the country’s president from 2008 to 2012 and is currently the deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, has warned.
On Friday, Medvedev posted a short message on his Telegram channel commenting on a remark made earlier in the day by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“It will be much like with the oil. There simply won’t be Russian gas in Europe,” the politician wrote.
His warning came shortly after von der Leyen said that she firmly believed “that it is now time for a price cap on Russian pipeline gas to Europe.” The official noted that the ceiling “can be proposed at European level,” adding that “there also is a legal foundation at European level to skim profits temporarily as an emergency measure at a time of crisis.”
Also on Friday, G7 foreign ministers issued a statement following an online meeting, which signaled the countries’ “joint political intention to finalise and implement” a price cap on Russian oil.
According to the communique, the measure is “specifically designed to reduce Russian revenues and Russia’s ability to fund its war of aggression whilst limiting the impact of Russia’s war on global energy prices.”
The Group of Seven also expressed hope that a “broad coalition” of countries would abide by the proposed price ceiling.
Moscow has already made it clear that should such a restriction be imposed on its oil, it would simply cease selling its crude to those nations, turning to alternative buyers instead.
Following the start of Russia’s offensive against Ukraine in late February, gas prices have climbed to record highs in Europe. This, in turn, has seen overall inflation go up considerably, too.
To make matters worse, Russia has incrementally reduced gas supplies to the EU to a fraction of pre-February levels over the past few months. Moscow has been citing technical issues caused by Western sanctions as well as scheduled maintenance as reasons for cutting supplies.
The bloc, for its part, accuses Russia of weaponizing its energy exports.
