Energy prices have skyrocketed across the EU due to the disruption of cheap supplies from Russia, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has said.
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Tuesday, von der Leyen said that before 2022, the EU was receiving 45% of its gas and 50% of its coal from Russia, while Moscow was one of the bloc’s largest oil suppliers. “This energy appeared cheap, but it exposed us to blackmail,” she said.
Von der Leyen went on to claim that Russian President Vladimir Putin “cut us off his gas supplies” after the conflict in Ukraine erupted in February 2022.
“Our gas imports from Russia went down by roughly 75%. And now we import from Russia only 3% of our oil, and no coal at all,” she stated.