Dear Vladimir,

It’s been three months since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Despite pledges to reduce dependency on Russian oil and gas, three months in, Russian fossil fuel revenues have only increased. In the first two months since the war began, the EU's payments to Russian companies for fossil fuels doubled.

Shell and Exxon have supplied huge amounts of money to Russia since the invasion of Crimea in 2014 [1]. Shell paid the Russian government $7.9 billion. 

Whilst Shell’s CEO said ‘we are shocked by the loss of life in Ukraine, which we deplore’ information from financial data provider Refinitv shows the company has shipped 3.5 million barrels of Russian oil since the invasion of Ukraine began 3 months ago.

Vladimir, Shell’s and Exxon’s shareholders will be meeting soon.

Will you take one more step to hold Shell and Exxon accountable for their actions? We made it easy for you to tweet at them -  just hit the buttons below and tell them that we are watching!

Your tweet will read: Hey @Shell, you claim to be shocked by the loss of life in Ukraine, but according to @Global_Witness you shipped 3.5 million barrels of Russian oil since the invasion of Ukraine. On the day you meet your shareholders, do the right thing and drop Russian fossil fuels!

Your tweet will read: Hey @ExxonMobil, on the day you meet your shareholders we're watching you! You were responsible for paying $2.8bn to the Russian government since the Crimea invasion in 2014. We haven't forgotten - #FossilFuelsFundWar - https://gwitness.org/3KY6REE

It has been three months of constant proof that fossil fuels do fund war.

Fossil fuel money has helped enable Putin to launch his war with full force against the Ukrainian people.

Meanwhile, the companies responsible for these crises are those reaping profits and capitalising on the suffering of so many.

Please tweet at Shell and Exxon in one click today and tell them that they can no longer escape accountability for their role in the ongoing war in Ukraine. 

We crunched the numbers and revealed how much gas giants like Shell, Exxon and BP contributed to Russia’s war machine. The figure was staggering - $100 billion between 2014-2021.

Vladimir, would you tweet at Shell and Exxon today and tell them to stop funding this senseless war? 

Tweet at Shell

Tweet at Exxon

Onwards,
The Global Witness Team

PS: Don’t miss our Twitter Space tomorrow, unveiling the fossil fuel industry’s PR tactics to distance themselves from conflict they helped fund. Set your reminder here: https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1MYxNnyoaPPxw

[1] European and US energy companies are responsible for nearly USD 100 billion to Putin’s war chest since Crimea invasion [Read more]