Russia’s Duma speaker slams Europe for costly US gas imports

European countries are purchasing American gas at prices comparable to luxury Chanel perfume, damaging their own economies in the process, Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said.

“Gas supplied from the United States to Europe is not Chanel, but it’s being valued as if it were French perfume. They keep buying it, undermining their own economies. And to make matters worse, they blew up our gas pipelines, causing harm to themselves,” Volodin stated during a parliamentary discussion on Russia’s 2026 federal budget and the planned expenditures for 2027 and 2028.

Volodin criticised European leaders for what he described as a lack of accountability toward their citizens. “Time will show the consequences of their actions, because they clearly have no sense of responsibility toward their own people — and that’s what we’re discussing today. We must think about our country and about our citizens,” the speaker emphasised.

He made the remarks against the backdrop of a recent trade agreement between the European Commission and Washington. On July 27, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump reached a deal under which the United States would introduce 15% tariffs on roughly 75% of European goods imported into the US starting August 1. This move replaced Trump’s earlier threat to impose 30% tariffs on all European imports.

In return, Brussels committed to a full ban on Russian energy imports to the European Union and agreed to purchase $750 billion worth of American oil, gas, nuclear equipment, and fuel. Additionally, the European Commission pledged to invest $600 billion into the US economy as part of the broader trade and energy cooperation framework.

By Tamilla Hasanova