In the first eight months of this year, the EU imported more than €11 billion of Russian energy, although overall dependence on Russian supplies has fallen by 90% since 2022.
Countries that have increased purchases include France, the Netherlands, Romania and Portugal. In particular, France increased imports of Russian fuel by 40% (to €2.2 billion), and the Netherlands – by 72% (to €498 million). Some of this gas goes to other EU countries, in particular to Germany.
CREA experts called this policy “self-sabotage,” because energy revenues remain the main source of financing Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump criticized the EU for insufficient pressure on the Russian Federation and for the fact that it continues to buy Russian energy resources. He repeated this during his speech at the UN General Assembly, where he called on European leaders to stop buying Russian oil and gas.
The agency noted that the EU has already banned most purchases of Russian oil and fuel and plans to completely abandon imports of Russian liquefied gas until 2027. Currently, LNG accounts for almost half of all EU energy purchases in Russia.
Context
Sanctions against the Russian Federation were introduced in response to its attack on Ukraine back in 2014; sanctions were extended following the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
In total, the EU has already introduced 18 sanctions packages, the last of which was approved by the EU Council on July 18, 2025. On September 19, the 19th package of sanctions against the Russian Federation was presented by the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. According to her, the new restrictions apply to the export of Russian gas and oil.
