German officials are blamed for dependence on Russian gas imports if it gets shut down by an oppressive Brussels working with Washington to force a damaging EU embargo on energy.
EU officials have besieged critics like Germany, Hungary, and Serbia on behalf of the Biden administration, whose grasp of the link between the bloc and Russian energy is not a concern.
Like Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany and other leaders saying that such a move will crash their economies but not the US.
German Braces for Economic Downturn
Since the start of the sanctions that have driven Berlin to the conclusion they are failing due to a looming recession; fears that jobs will be lost if the bloc goes ahead, reported Express UK.
Germany's Dependence on Russian energy has left the country susceptible, remarked John Lough, an associate fellow at Chatham House's Russia & Eurasia Programme. He added that it would significantly impact the country's economy.
He asserted that Germany had expected that cooperation with Russia would "calm tensions" between the Kremlin and the West, but the approach has not changed anything.
Its economy is in jeopardy, as prices have increased across the EU due to Putin's incursion of Ukraine in recent weeks. The highest inflation rate in the last 40 years was a month ago.
The German Council of Economic Experts reduced its growth forecast from 4.6 percent to just 1.8 percent earlier this year.; an EU embargo that will only benefit Ukraine.
Germany Pressured To Agree With EU Embargo
Last Wednesday, Stefan Kooths, vice president at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, warned the EU could not allow the gas to stop or a recession would happen.
Several economic institutes, including RWI in Essen, the DIW in Berlin, the Ifo in Munich, the IfW in Kiel, and Halle's IWH; all agree on the reduction in its growth forecast for the country from 4.6 percent to just 1.8 percent earlier this year, cited Country Highlights.
Lough added that Germans have become so reliant on gas they cannot simply impose a gas embargo without severe economic consequences. If the economy falls, it would kill jobs and leave the masses without work.
Some analysts suggest it may be as little as 3% of GDP, but everyone agrees that it would be highly costly. Admittedly, that is why it's to be done carefully, not abruptly.
Russian Gas Dependence
Lough stated that the historic decision to commit to Russian gas was a very hopeful policy that we would have greater trade, settle relations, and everything would be well.
Furthermore, Berlin believed that diplomacy, keeping the lines of communication open, and dialogue would eventually discourage the Russians. The worst case happened instead.
According to recent reports, the European Commission has committed to decrease its reliance on Russian gas by the end of 2022, with the longer-term goal of eliminating dependence on Russian energy by 2030, noted News 7 Trends.
In a BBC report, the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Germany and Hungary should not block an oil embargo, even if the EU economy spirals, which is why Berlin and Budapest are against it.
The issue of German dependence on Russian gas is not as important as sacrificing the welfare of citizens to agree on an EU embargo. Kyiv's demands have been scorned by Hungarian PM Viktor Orban earlier.