A coalition of NGOs from all over Europe, including Poland, has urged the European Commission and Member State governments to stop importing Russian oil and gas.
“Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels is a question of Europe’s security and of our morals. We cannot allow the money from imported oil and gas to kill people in Ukraine. Today everything speaks in favor of a definite end to the import of fossil fuels from Russia – we must stop financing the war against Ukraine and we must move away from Europe’s dangerous dependence on unpredictable Russia,” says Marcin Korolec, president of the Institute of Green Economy, signatory of the appeal to the European Commission.
While the world looks on in horror at Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Europe is facing its worst crisis in decades. The outbreak of solidarity and compassion for Ukraine in Europe is reassuring, but humanitarian and military aid is not enough. The rockets devastating Ukrainian cities were bought with the money Putin and his colleagues earned by selling gasoline and diesel fuel to European drivers.
European oil money – that’s $4 out of every $5 earned on Russian oil and gas exports – has been the backbone of Putin’s military spending for more than two decades. Ending our dependence on fossil fuels, starting with Russian oil, gas and coal, is no longer just a climate goal, but an urgent moral imperative, the NGOs’ statement reads.
The coalition is also demanding that the country of origin for oil products be made clear at petrol stations to ensure consumers do not inadvertently fund the Putin regime.
“The answer to the current crisis is the transition to electromobility and RES energy production. This is the only realistic scenario for the Polish economy to become independent from fuel imports from Russia. Today it is clearly visible that it is important for health, climate, but also for safety,” says Rafał (?) Bajczuk from the Foundation for the Promotion of Electric Vehicles.
More information: ‘End imports of Russian oil to stop financing Putin’s war’
