European Union leaders hold a two-day summit on Thursday at which the bloc will hold gas to contain the energy crisis fueled by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and his strategy to cut off gas supplies to the EU. At will, there was disagreement as to whether and how a price cap could be imposed.
And in the past, the EU’s traditional duo of drivers, Germany and France, were at odds.
French President Emmanuel Macron said: “Our role is to ensure that Europe is united and that Germany is part of it.” It’s not good for us to be isolated, and it’s important to find unanimous consensus on proposals that are subject to broad consensus.”
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the controversy was not about ends but methods. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said: “The price of gas, oil and coal must fall. The price of electricity must also fall. This will require a joint effort by all of us in Europe.” ‘ said.
The Netherlands also said it was concerned that setting the price cap too high would force supplies to flow elsewhere through Europe. “Everyone wants gas prices to fall, but we want to make sure gas imports happen,” Rutte said.
EU announces training mission in Ukraine, $500 million for weapons
It set the stage for difficult talks unlikely to be resolved by Friday afternoon, when the summit is due to end.
At the opening ceremony of the summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was to emphasize the need for firm EU unity in confronting Russia. country during winter.
Mr. Scholz said Mr. Zelensky should not worry about such things. Scholz, who has responded to Russian attacks targeting civilian infrastructure and spreading terror across cities with killer drones, said they amounted to “war crimes.”
“Even such scorched-earth tactics will not help Russia win the war. They will only strengthen the resolve and endurance of Ukraine and its partners,” he told parliament in Berlin.
The coming cold weather is also at the heart of EU headquarters, where leaders heat up in meetings expected to last into the late hours of the night.
natural gas price The summer got out of control as EU countries tried to compete with each other to fill up their stockpiles for the winter. Now, EU leaders will increasingly try to pool their gas purchases, perhaps even setting a temporary price cap so that overheated energy markets don’t bother them again.
Member States have already agreed to cut gas demand by 15% during the winter months. They also pledged to fill gas storage facilities to at least 80% of capacity by November and reduce peak demand for electricity by at least 5% as a way to reduce gas-fired power generation.
With 15 countries including France and Italy calling for such outspoken intervention, the issue of capping EU petrol prices has been steadily on the political agenda for months as energy shortages intensify. I was.
Zelensky to deal with EU at energy summit, leader considers gas price cap
And while Angela Merkel was often the calm voice in brokering compromises during her 16 years as chancellor of Germany, her successor Scholz is now at the center of divisions within the bloc.
Germany and the Netherlands argue that market interventions such as excessive price caps could undermine both the availability of natural gas and the incentives for governments and consumers to conserve it.
A plan to pool measures to jointly purchase gas and improve solidarity with EU countries hardest hit by high energy prices is expected to garner more support, diplomats said. there is
Russia is increasingly relying on drone attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid and civilian infrastructure, with attacks on Ukrainian cities sowing panic, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. Tactics that Wednesday called “war crimes” and “pure terrorism.”
Diplomats are already considering further sanctions in the future. But Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s familiarity with the Kremlin makes life more difficult. His previous EU sanctions targeting Russia have been unanimously approved, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep Orban by agreeing to waivers.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“The sanctions that failed in Brussels have already become an almost unbearable burden.