Members of the G7 have agreed to impose a price cap on Russian oil. The leaders said the aim is to hit Moscow’s ability to finance the war in Ukraine.
As retaliation, the Russian government said they would stop selling oil to countries that imposed price caps. Also, shortly after the G7 ministers announced their plan today, Gazprom, the Russian-owned energy giant, said it would postpone restarting the flow of natural gas through Nordstream 1.
This continuation of multi-dimensional skirmishes and provocations between the US-led coalitions and Russia not only risk the world’s geopolitical stability but in the short term hits Europe’s overall economy the hardest.
While the governments of both sides keep promoting tensions, the average European citizens’ livelihoods are being depleted. Euro zone inflation hit a new record high in August of 9.1%, according to Eurostat, with high energy prices the main driving force.
With the intensification of tensions with Russia, energy prices will keep soaring for our fellow people in the old continent and then will spread across other regions. Sad to see but this is the path our leaders are choosing for all of us.