Reiche: “We will no longer fill Putin’s war chest.”

Luxembourg (dpa/bmwk.de) – EU member states have voted by a majority to support a complete halt to imports of Russian gas. Under the plan, no gas from Russia will be brought into the EU after 2028. Germany’s Minister for Economic Affairs Katherina Reiche and her European counterparts backed the proposal at a meeting in Luxembourg. A total ban on imports of Russian liquefied natural gas could come even sooner: as part of a new package of sanctions against Moscow, the European Commission is seeking to end imports as early as the beginning of 2027.  

“Europe is becoming independent of Russian energy supplies,” said Reiche. “As Ukraine faces its fourth winter of war, one thing must be clear: Russia must not be allowed to continue financing its war through energy and raw material exports to the European Union.” Reiche noted that the EU had already significantly reduced its gas imports from Russia this year. She said: “We will no longer fill Putin’s war chest,” she said. “At the same time, we must support Ukraine in rebuilding its gas infrastructure. Russia has deliberately destroyed almost 60 per cent of it since October. Germany is providing active reconstruction assistance, including 390 million euros for the Ukraine Energy Support Fund.”