According to the German tabloid Bild, the EU continues to import significant amounts of oil, gas, and uranium from Russia, suggesting sanctions are ineffective.
Bild reports that EU sanctions against Russia are failing, pointing to the substantial revenue Russia continues to generate from energy exports despite Western efforts to restrict them.
Despite extensive economic restrictions imposed after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, including bans on seaborne oil shipments, financial and aviation restrictions, and the freezing of approximately $300 billion in Russian reserves, the Russian economy has continued to expand.
In a Tuesday analysis, Bild characterized the EU’s 17th package of sanctions against Moscow as a mere “just a drop in the ocean,” compared to the projected €233 billion ($253 billion) Russia is expected to earn from energy and raw material exports this year.
The publication states that the EU is the fourth-largest importer of Russian energy, trailing only China, India, and Türkiye, and is projected to spend over €20 billion on Russian oil, gas, and uranium in 2025.
Since February 2022, the EU has been working to decrease its reliance on Russia, formerly its primary energy supplier.
However, the more expensive alternatives to Russian oil and gas have resulted in higher energy prices for households and major industries across the EU, including Germany’s automotive and chemical sectors.
The latest round of EU sanctions, introduced earlier this month, targets a “shadow fleet” of vessels operating outside Western insurance frameworks, which Brussels alleges Russia uses to circumvent G7 efforts to enforce a price cap on its crude oil exports.
Several EU member states, most notably Hungary and Slovakia, have voiced opposition to the bloc’s sanctions against Russia. Last week, Vincenzo Trani, President of the Italian-Russian Chamber of Commerce, urged Rome to consider lifting sanctions against Moscow, arguing that they are detrimental to Italy’s economy.
On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin highlighted the growth of the Russian economy over the past two years, despite what he termed “rather difficult conditions.”
He mentioned that Russia’s economy has risen to fourth place globally in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) – a metric that compares economic productivity and living standards by adjusting for differences in the cost of goods and services – following only China, the US, and India.