Olaf Scholz: EU Stops Russian Coal Imports In Summer

And before the end of the year, the EU will refuse oil.

Earlier it was predicted that the EU countries would offer to phase out Russian oil before the end of the year.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz confirmed in an interview with The Indian Express on May 2 that the EU will phase out Russian oil before the end of the year, and will also greatly reduce gas imports from Russia, according to the website 24tv.ua.

The EU stops importing Russian coal this summer.

He noted that many countries were joined to the sanctions against Russia because of the war in the Ukraine, even if these sanctions compulsorily entail economic expenditures for them.

Now we are implementing a very ambitious policy to reduce our dependence on fossil fuel imports from Russia. "We will stop importing Russian coal this summer, we will also gradually abandon Russian oil until the end of the year and will significantly reduce imports of gas from Russia," Scholz said.

According to him, the war that Russia brought upon Ukraine had severe consequences for the global economy, affecting, for example, the supply of wheat and food security worldwide.

"Germany, as G7 presidency, supports our partners in alleviating the effects of Russia‘s war on global food security," the Chancellor added.

He said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine shatters the homes, the livelihoods and the very lives of Ukrainians. Scholz also noted that he had previously personally called on Putin to end the war immediately and continued to do so.

Those responsible must be held accountable

"As a response to this massive and unacceptable breach of international law, the European Union has adopted, together with our transatlantic partners, unprecedented sanctions against Russia and against individuals contributing to this war in order to impose on them severe costs for this war," said Scholz.

The German Chancellor also noted that the attack on Ukraine by Russia is on the top of the agenda for all of Europe and beyond, as the war breaks with the core principles of the UN Charter, sovereignty and the inviolability of international borders.

The brutality of the Russian aggression against civilians in Ukraine is shocking and appalling. "Massacres against the civilian population are war crimes and those responsible must be held accountable," he added.

Why Germany has changed the narrative

Recall that Germany's positive decision to impose the embargo on Russian oil could be connected with the country's recent success in finding alternative energy suppliers.

According to the German Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection, the country's dependence on Russian oil has decreased from about 35% in 2021 to 12% as of April 1. From Russian gas - from 55% to about 35%.

Germany also reduced its dependence on coal supplies from Russia from 50% to about 8% since the beginning of the year, in particular due to changes in existing contracts.