“The contradictions will deepen”: why in Germany they started talking about the destruction of the unity of the European Union on anti-Russian sanctions

The unity of the European Union on the issue of anti-Russian sanctions is beginning to crumble, said Vice Chancellor, Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection of Germany Robert Habeck at the opening of the Hannover Industrial Fair.

“After the Russian attack on Ukraine, we saw what is possible when Europe is united.

In the context of tomorrow's summit, let's hope that this state of affairs will continue in the future.

However, this (unity. -

) is already starting to collapse, ”Khabek said.

He voiced this position on the eve of the summit of the EU heads of state, one of the main topics of which will be the introduction of an embargo on oil supplies from the Russian Federation.

The European Union has been unable to reach a consensus on this issue for several weeks now.

At the same time, the minister pointed to the possible existence of disagreements on the topic of sanctions within the German government.

Habek called on the German leadership to demonstrate unity at the summit of EU heads of state, and not abstain from voting due to disagreements within the coalition, Reuters reports.

• Vice Chancellor, Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection of Germany Robert Habek

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• © Michael Sohn

According to experts, disagreements within the coalition may be due to the fact that the German economy has been seriously affected by anti-Russian restrictions.

“Sanctions have had a negative impact on the economy.

This is related to energy supplies.

Sanctions are also the cause of discord in the ruling coalition.

It is practically impossible to replace Russian supplies of gas and other energy resources.

It cannot be ruled out that, against the backdrop of sanctions, the ruling coalition may fall apart altogether, ”said Alexander Kamkin, senior researcher at IMEMO RAS, in an interview with RT.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who also spoke at the opening of the international Hannover Industrial Fair, also pointed out the harmful effect of economic restrictions.

According to him, many companies in Germany have faced economic losses due to sanctions.

Scholz noted that the German government is trying to prevent more serious damage through loans and targeted aid packages, however, despite this, there will still be costs for the German economy.

However, he reiterated that the imposition of sanctions was the right decision.

Hungary vs.

The extraordinary summit of the heads of state of the European Union, which Khabek spoke about, will be held on May 30-31.

It is planned to discuss the sixth package of sanctions against Russia, which should include an oil embargo.

The introduction of new restrictions requires the approval of all 27 EU countries.

However, at the moment, the necessary unity of the European countries cannot be achieved.

The main obstacle to establishing a ban on the supply of Russian oil is the position of Hungary.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban has repeatedly stated that his government will not agree to sanctions affecting energy supplies.

• Viktor Orban

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• © Christian Marquardt / ZUMA Press

In his opinion, the EU leadership makes proposals for sanctions, not taking into account the economic differences between the EU countries.

Orban compared the consequences for Hungary from the cessation of Russian energy supplies to the explosion of an atomic bomb.

On May 30, Orban said that an agreement on an oil embargo in the EU had not yet been reached.

The Hungarian Prime Minister added that the proposals of the European Commission on the oil embargo were not properly discussed with the member states of the European Union.

He blamed the lack of consensus on the EC.

In turn, Foreign Minister of the Republic Peter Szijjarto on May 11 indicated that Hungary could support a ban on oil imports from Russia only if the European Commission helped Budapest cope with the consequences of such a step.

He estimated the necessary investments in the Hungarian economy to compensate for the damage at €15-18 billion.

In addition, Szijjarto said that the embargo on the supply of Russian raw materials should not apply to pipeline oil.

Otherwise, the restrictions will seriously affect the provision of a stable energy supply to Hungary, the minister stressed.

However, even in such a lightened form, the embargo at the summit is unlikely to be accepted.

According to TASS, citing its sources, the committee of permanent representatives of 27 EU countries (Coreper) at an emergency meeting before the EU summit could not reach a compromise on a lighter version of the embargo against Russia, which provides only a ban on oil supplies by sea.

According to the agency, a decision on the oil embargo at the upcoming summit is also unlikely.

Against the backdrop of such disagreements in the EU leadership, they started talking about a possible rejection of the principle of unanimity in voting.

According to the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, this practice no longer makes sense when making decisions in key areas of EU policy.

However, no practical steps have been taken in this direction so far.

"Economic auto-da-fé" of Europe

Moscow believes that Brussels' refusal of energy resources from the Russian Federation would be suicidal for the EU.

This, in particular, was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Obviously, along with Russian energy resources, the possibility of increasing economic activity will also leave Europe for other regions of the world.

Such an economic auto-da-fé, suicide is, of course, an internal affair of European countries.

We must act pragmatically, proceed primarily from our own economic interests,” the head of state said at a meeting on the situation in the oil sector.

At the same time, Moscow is ready for a possible embargo from the EU.

As noted in the Russian Foreign Ministry, in the event of the loss of the European market, Moscow will redirect supplies to other countries.

In particular, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said that the Russian Federation is actively deploying infrastructure for energy supplies to the East.

“Our natural response is obvious: a reorientation of Russian oil and gas exports will be required.

Of course, this is not an easy task, the solution of which will entail a change in supply chains.

Russia is actively deploying infrastructure for the export of coal, oil and gas to the East, as you know,” Zakharova said.

She added that global energy demand, especially in the Asia-Pacific region, will grow steadily, so "there is no doubt about the demand for Russian energy resources."

The diplomat also added that the volume of hydrocarbon exports from Russia has declined, but revenues from it will not decrease due to a significant increase in prices.

“The so-called embargo, the introduction of which is being actively discussed in the European Union, can further inflate oil prices,” Zakharova explained.

"Unity never existed"

According to Alexander Kamkin, speaking about the collapse of the unity of the West, Robert Habek states the real state of affairs.

“The sixth package of sanctions has not yet been agreed upon.

Some states, such as Hungary, have taken a very hard line on this issue.

In a sense, Europe has reached the limit of consensus.

Some countries no longer see tangible benefits from sanctions.

So we can say that there is no longer unity in the EU,” the analyst said.

• EU summit

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• © JOHN THYS

A member of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation Nikita Danyuk holds a similar point of view.

“Europe really cannot agree on the sixth package of sanctions, the stumbling block is the issue of an embargo on Russian oil.

The essence of the problem is that if exceptions are granted to some countries, for example, Hungary, then other EU members will also request compensation for damages from sanctions.

The European Union cannot do this, ”the analyst said in an interview with RT.

At the same time, Danyuk suggested that in fact there was no unity, which was often declared by the leaders of Western countries, in Europe.

“Obviously, there has never been any unity.

The sanctions were an attempt to impose a political solution from above, which does not correspond to the geo-economic interests of many countries within Europe.

Further contradictions will only deepen,” he stated.

According to Alexander Kamkin, the lack of unity of the West is evidenced not only by problems with the adoption of sanctions against the Russian Federation, but also by disagreements among NATO members.

“There are also disagreements along the lines of NATO.

The possible entry of Finland and Sweden into the alliance caused a negative reaction from Turkey and Croatia.

The migration issue also causes controversy: now the situation of the migration crisis of 2015-2016 is repeating itself, only now refugees from Ukraine, and not from the Middle East, are coming to the EU, ”says the expert.

Victoria Fedosova, deputy director of the RUDN Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts, in an interview with RT, suggested that at the upcoming EU summit, Brussels is unlikely to be able to overcome differences and impose a ban on the purchase of Russian oil.

“The embargo, most likely, will not be introduced.

This is evidenced by some statements of the EU leadership.

But if such a measure is introduced, then the Russian Federation will be able to find other buyers, such a valuable product will not stand idle.

With the current price tags, Russia can even make a discount on large consignments, as was the case, for example, with India.

And for the industry of Europe and the average consumer, this will be a disaster, because no one can immediately compensate for such volumes in Europe, ”concluded the analyst.