Germany accelerates decoupling from Russian oil

Germany accelerates decoupling from Russian oil

Good morning and welcome to Europe Express.

Germany moved on several fronts yesterday — most notably on sending heavy weaponry to Ukraine, after weeks of resisting Kyiv’s calls. But Berlin also indicated yesterday that it could very soon stomach an EU oil embargo on Russia, something that was out of the question just weeks ago. We’ll unpack the reasons for this change of heart and what it spells for the next sanctions package.

Meanwhile, on the other non-sanctions-hit fossil fuel, natural gas, Poland and Bulgaria’s national energy companies announced that Russia’s Gazprom will halt their gas supplies from today.

Moldova’s security situation meanwhile is worsening, with renewed explosions taking place yesterday in the pro-Russian breakaway region of Transnistria, which is home to more than 1,000 Russian troops. We’ll explore what the pro-European president had to say about the incidents and why fresh tensions in Ukraine’s small neighbour are a cause for concern.

In other news, we’ll bring you up to speed with another ruling by the EU’s top court, which dismissed a case brought forward by Poland that was challenging an EU obligation for online platforms to take down content in breach of copyright and other rules.

Speeding up

An EU-wide embargo on Russian oil is