- Germany gave Russia billions for fossil fuels in the first 100 days of the Ukraine war, per an analysis.
- The analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air put the figure at $12.5 billion.
- Fossil fuel exports earned Russia $97 billion in 100 days, the analysis showed.
Germany paid Russia more than $12.5 billion for fossil fuels during the first 100 days of the Ukraine invasion, an analysis shows.
Russia earned $97 billion in revenue from fossil fuel exports from February 24 to June 3, according to an analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), a think tank based in Helsinki, Finland.
During this time, Germany was Moscow's biggest client for pipeline gas with imports hitting around $8.3 million, per the analysis.
Having said this, the analysis showed that China surpassed Germany as the largest importer of all fossil fuels from Russia. Germany has cut Russia's oil and gas imports by 25% and 31%, respectively, since President Vladimir Putin's troops invaded Ukraine, per the analysis.
Germany continues to rely on Russia for 35% of its natural gas but plans to wean itself off Russian fuel imports by the end of 2024, the country's economy minister said in a March 25 press release.
Trailing behind Germany were Italy and the Netherlands, which both paid Russia around $8 billion for fossil fuels, and then Turkey, which spent nearly $7 billion on imports, according to CREA's analysis.
Since the beginning of the Ukraine war, Russia has supplied the European Union with 85% of pipeline gas, 75% of liquefied natural gas, 50% of crude oil, 30% of coal, per the analysis. Overall, the EU has spent around $59 billion on 61% of Russia's fossil fuel exports, the analysis said.
The EU hasn't sanctioned Russian fossil fuel imports, despite levying harsh sanctions on companies and oligarchs over the Ukraine war. European Union leaders reached an agreement at the end of May to cut around 90% of oil imports from Russia by the end of 2022. Meanwhile, the US banned Russian energy imports in March.
Putin said in a meeting on Thursday that the West won't be able to cut off Russian energy resources over the next few years, Interfax reported.