Even as western countries condemn Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, it’s Russian oil and gas that is keeping most of the western and especially European countries running. The west has long been condemning and sanctions weren’t enough to stop the import of Russian fossil fuels because of t how heavily dependent Europe is on Russian fuel, back in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine leaders mostly turned a blind eye towards it because of the fuel dependency.
This conflict is likely to change the ongoing scenario eventually but not anytime soon. In March alone, Europe paid Russia around €22 billion (US$24 billion) for oil and gas, according to Bruegel, a think tank based in Brussels.
Europe plans to start importing fuel from Qatar, UAE and the US to decrease its dependence on Russia, but that will take a few years. This will also drive up emissions in the shorter term because renewable energy infrastructure is not there yet but countries need the energy to run, the EU also has carbon emissions capped and the increase in emissions at one place will drive up the cost of carbon credits so it can be offset somewhere else. The price of fuel will continue to surge to make up for it.
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Technology is a useful servant, but a dangerous master, it was rightly said. Electronic devices have grown into an inevitable part of our daily lives.
