Germany, very dependent on Russia for its supply of hydrocarbons, risks running out of gas next winter, said in an interview on Saturday March 19, the Minister of the Economy, who is stepping up the steps to avoid this scenario .

The gas supply "is not yet completely guaranteed" for this winter, said Robert Habeck in an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio.

"If we don't get more gas next winter and if deliveries from Russia are cut off, then we wouldn't have enough gas to heat all the houses and run all the industries (. ..)”, warned the environmental minister.

The government of Europe's largest economy is preparing for this eventuality "which we hope can be avoided", added Robert Habeck.

The minister went on Saturday to Qatar, one of the three largest exporters of liquefied natural gas (LNG), this resource on which European countries rely to reduce their dependence on Russian gas, before a visit in stride. in the United Arab Emirates.

>> Gas supply to Europe: Could Algeria, Qatar and Iran replace Russia

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Destabilization of the German economy and society

The question is particularly delicate for Germany, half of whose gas imports come from Russia.

This week, Robert Habeck, also climate minister, has already visited Norway, a major gas producer, after a trip to the United States earlier this month.

Berlin is criticized for opposing an immediate embargo on Russian hydrocarbons in an attempt to dry up financial flows to Moscow following the invasion of Ukraine. 

But for the government, such a boycott would destabilize the German economy and society due to the expected spike in the cost of energy and the risk of shortages.

On Friday, the minister had already insisted on the urgency of "making the supply secure, then moving forward" by cutting Russian imports, in an interview with the public television channel ARD, while acknowledging that the moral dimension in the hydrocarbon trade "does not really exist".

The United Arab Emirates and Qatar have both come under international criticism for the human rights situation, with Qatar in particular over the awarding of the World Cup to be held there at the end of the year.

With AFP

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