Reuters: Europe backs Ukraine while still importing billions in Russian energy

European nations, including staunch supporters of Ukraine like France, are simultaneously supplying Kyiv with military and humanitarian aid while continuing to purchase significant amounts of Russian energy, funnelling billions of euros into Moscow’s wartime economy.

Nearly four years into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Union finds itself in the paradoxical position of financing both sides of the conflict, according to the latest article by Reuters.

While the bloc has cut its dependence on Russian energy by roughly 90% since 2022, EU imports from Russia still exceeded €11 billion in the first eight months of 2025, according to a Reuters analysis of data from the Helsinki-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).

The analysis shows that seven EU countries increased their imports from Russia compared with last year, including five that are strong supporters of Ukraine. France’s imports rose 40% to €2.2 billion, while the Netherlands jumped 72% to €498 million. Much of the imported gas, entering Europe via LNG ports in France and Spain, is transshipped to other EU buyers rather than consumed locally.

Vaibhav Raghunandan, EU-Russia specialist at CREA, described the trend as “a form of self-sabotage,” noting that energy sales remain Russia’s primary source of revenue for waging war in Ukraine. “The Kremlin is quite literally getting funding to continue to deploy their armed forces in Ukraine,” he said.

The issue has drawn attention internationally. U.S. President Donald Trump criticised European leaders last month at the UN General Assembly, urging them to immediately halt all purchases of Russian oil and gas. “Europe has to step it up… They’re buying oil and gas from Russia while they’re fighting Russia. It’s embarrassing,” he said.

The French energy ministry told Reuters that the increase in imports this year reflected deliveries to other European customers, without specifying which countries or companies. Gas market analysts at Kpler indicated that some of France’s Russian imports are re-exported to Germany. The Dutch government said it supports EU plans to phase out Russian energy but cannot halt existing contracts until the measures are codified into EU law.

Although the EU has already banned most purchases of Russian crude oil and fuel, liquefied natural gas (LNG) now represents almost half the value of total Russian energy imports, and the bloc plans to accelerate a ban on LNG to 2027, a year earlier than previously scheduled. EU energy officials have emphasised that the phased reduction aims to prevent price spikes or supply shortages for member states.

Despite the ban timeline, European payments for Russian energy could continue to fund the Kremlin’s war effort for a year or longer. Trump and some analysts have argued that U.S. oil and gas could replace Russian supplies, though this would increase Europe’s dependency on U.S. energy at a time when Washington is using tariffs as a policy tool.

Anne-Sophie Corbeau, a researcher at Columbia University’s Centre on Global Energy Policy, noted that U.S. LNG is controlled by private companies, not governments, and thus cannot be directly ordered to replace Russian supplies. “It is an illusion to think that U.S. LNG would replace Russian LNG on a one-to-one basis. Companies optimise their portfolios,” she said.

By Tamilla Hasanova