Dear Vladimir,

As Russia ramped up its invasion of Ukraine, world leaders seemed to be falling over each other to impose tough sanctions on trade with Putin. 

But months since the war started, it is clear that the sanctions have failed, because they do not cover a big financial boost for Russia - exporting oil, gas and coal. Russian revenues from fossil fuels are through the roof, doubling in the first 100 days of the war. 

The fact is that Putin can still sell fossil fuels directly to almost every country in the world. Oleg Ustenko, chief economic advisor to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, recently condemned the sanctions on Russia as “non-existent”.

Ustenko notes that, despite the headlines, new UK, EU and US sanctions grabbed and the political discussion they caused, “restrictions currently cover less than 5% of Russia’s pre-war crude oil export”.

That has allowed Russia to benefit from high prices, while having a negligible impact on the amount they produce or export. Whilst energy giants report massive profits, people are struggling with their energy bills, a disparity that has been damned as “grotesque” by the UN Secretary-General.

And yet, far from ramping up efforts to further aid Ukraine and their own people in the long-term, UK and EU leaders are watering down their restrictions on Russian oil trade.

The world is at a crossroads. 

Too often our leaders choose to go down the well-trodden path of ineffective climate measures that look good on paper, but provide no real solutions. This is an area where several roads intersect - the war in Ukraine, the energy crisis seen across the world, and climate breakdown.

We need to get this one right. 

We are therefore calling for a complete embargo on Russian fossil fuels in Europe. Governments have the power to take the first step towards a safe future: embargo on ALL Russian fossil fuels in Europe and invest in a rapid, fair, and equitable transition to clean energy, once and for all.

Onwards,
The Global Witness Team