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Germany 'supports Russian oil embargo', says minister

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Germany 'supports Russian oil embargo', says minister
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) speaks in the Bundestag on April 27th, 2022. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christophe Gateau

After weeks of scrambling to reduce its energy dependence on Russia, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said that Germany would support an embargo on Russian oil.

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Speaking on ARD on Sunday, Baerbock said Germany was now prepared to manage without Russian oil for several years due to a number of new supply contracts arranged in the past few months. 

A few weeks ago, it would not have been possible to endure an immediate supply stop, she said. 

Since the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine, Germany has been scrambling to diversify its energy supply and move away from Russian oil, gas and coil.

According to the government's latest progress report on energy security, it has managed to cut its dependence on Russian oil from 35 percent to 12 percent in a matter of weeks.

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With a German yes to an oil embargo, pressure is growing on the remaining EU member states, including Hungary, Austria and Italy, who are believed to be reluctant to support the move.

According to reports in the Wall Street Journal, officials are expected to make a decision later this week. 

However, questions still remain about the timescale of a potential trade ban and whether it would involve tariffs or caps to limit further price hikes. The United States is reportedly pressing EU states to avoid any measures that would lead to a long-term rise in energy costs.

READ ALSO:  ANALYSIS: How badly would a Russian gas embargo hurt ordinary Germans?

'No agreement'

Speaking to representatives of small- and medium-sized businesses on Monday, Economics Minister Robert Habeck claimed there was "still no agreement" on an oil embargo within the EU.

Germany could support an oil embargo, he said, but "other countries are not yet ready." 

He said that the move wouldn't leave Germany unscathed and could potentially lead to price hikes, but would no longer lead to an oil crisis, as would have been the case a month ago. 

The ministers' statements mark a major shift in the government's previously cautious stance on a trade ban for Russian energy supplies.

Previously, the traffic light coalition government, made of the Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats, had set a deadline of late summer to halve oil imports and had pledged to end them entirely by the end of the year. Gas imports from Russia, which currently make up around 55 percent of Germany's gas supply, are likely to continue until 2024. 

Europe's heavy reliance of Russian energy has been in the spotlight since the country launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, with Germany facing particularly heavy criticism over its opposition to an immediate embargo.

According to a study by Brussels-based think-tank Bruegel, the bloc sends over €1 billion to Russia's state-owned energy companies every day, dwarfing the amount of aid that has been sent to Ukraine since the start of the war. 

Last Tuesday, the Kremlin announced that it would end all gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria after both countries refused to comply with a demand to pay for their energy in rubles, sparking fears that this could be a precursor to shutting off supplies to other EU states. 

READ ALSO: Germany slashes growth forecasts amid Ukraine war

“This has to be taken seriously,” Economics Minister Robert Habeck said on Wednesday, stressing that Germany would continue to make its payments in euros or dollars and that the Russian supplier, Gazprom, would have to convert the money itself.

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