European energy ministers, summoned urgently to Brussels on Monday, sought a response to Gazprom's decision to cut off gas to Poland and Bulgaria and spoke of a gradual halt in their oil purchases as part of a 6th package of sanctions against Moscow.
“We refused to pay for Russian gas in rubles and Russia cut off the supply to us, but we are safe,” assured Polish Minister Anna Moskwa on her arrival for the meeting.
“We plead for an immediate embargo on oil and gas”
“We plead for an immediate embargo on oil and gas.
The time has come for oil, and then will come gas.
Europe must get rid of dependence on Russian fossil fuels,” she argued.
Polish gas reserves “will be at 100% of their capacity for this winter”, American LNG (liquefied natural gas) “has started to arrive via Lithuania and we will be supplied with gas from Norway via Denmark”, a- she explained.
Russia has responded to European sanctions against its central bank by imposing the obligation to open a ruble account for gas transactions.
“No country intends to open a ruble account”
However, the contracts concluded by European companies are denominated in euros or dollars and the European Commission considers that the conversion mechanism imposed by Moscow makes it possible to circumvent European sanctions.
Poland and Bulgaria paid for their purchases in the currency provided for in their contracts with Gazprom and refused to open a second account in roubles.
The Russian gas company in retaliation suspended its deliveries, considering that the payment had not been made.
Energy ministers must consider whether opening a second account to allow conversion into rubles poses a sanctions problem, as Gazprom delivers the gas, once payment has been received in euros or dollars , we explained from a European source.
“No company and no country intends to open a ruble account,” assured Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson on her arrival for the meeting.
But the question will be discussed during the meeting, a European source assured.
Reducing dependence on Russian fossil fuels
Ministers must also agree on a gradual cessation of purchases of Russian oil and petroleum products in order to dry up European funding for the war led by the Kremlin in Ukraine.
But no decision is expected at the end of their meeting, said French Minister Barbara Pompili, chair of the meeting.
“A new package of sanctions is in preparation, but this will not be the subject of this Energy Council.
He will come in the coming days,” she explained.
“We are working on a new sanctions package,” confirmed Commissioner Simson.
"A college meeting will be held on Tuesday in Strasbourg (on the sidelines of the Parliament session), and President Ursula von der Leyen will specify what has been decided," she said.
The proposal is finalized and will be adopted by the Commission on Tuesday, according to an EU source.
"The question of sanctions is not the competence of the energy ministers, but of foreign affairs", reminded the Spanish minister Teresa Ribera.
To reduce Europeans' dependence on fossil fuels “as quickly as possible”, the Spanish minister insisted on the need to provide the EU with interconnections for the transport of electricity and gas.
“Support an embargo”
"We have considerably reduced our dependence on Russian oil and we have created the necessary conditions to be able to support an embargo as well", assured his German counterpart Robert Habeck.
In 2021, Russia supplied 30% of crude oil and 15% of petroleum products purchased by the EU.
"We are not asking for an immediate embargo on all imports of fossil fuels, because (we know) that we could not last a single month," Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Monday in Berlin.
The main importers of fossil fuels from Russia (gas, crude oil, petroleum products and coal) are Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and France.
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