The US imposes an import ban on Russian oil, and Great Britain wants to follow suit. European countries like Germany are more dependent on Russia – with Greenpeace’s ideas, that could change.
The environmental organization Greenpeace has proposed short-term measures to reduce Germany’s oil consumption – and thus its dependence on Russian oil imports.
This includes the introduction of a temporary speed limit of 100 km/h on motorways, 80 km/h on country roads and 30 km/h in cities for the duration of the conflict. As stated in a paper available to the German Press Agency, this could improve traffic flow, reduce consumption-intensive speed changes and increase the efficiency of combustion engines.
An import ban on Russian oil is necessary in the current situation in order to remove the financial basis for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine. In addition to oil imports from other countries, measures are needed to reduce consumption in the short term. Depending on the design, 10 to 12 percent of oil and net oil product imports could be replaced with measures that can be implemented in the short term. It is necessary, however, that measures to reduce oil consumption are taken not only in Germany, but throughout Europe.
“Every tank filling, every delivery of heating oil flushes money into Putin’s war chest,” says Greenpeace traffic expert Benjamin Stephan. “These intolerable financial aid for Putin’s attack on Ukraine could be significantly reduced tomorrow.”
The proposed measures also include a continuation of the home office, which could bring considerable savings – this time not so much because of the corona pandemic, but to reduce fuel consumption. From a regulatory point of view, it would be conceivable to extend the home office obligation that currently applies.
Greenpeace also proposes that citizens should refrain from taking one in four leisure car journeys over 20 kilometers and that a car-free Sunday be imposed twice a month. Domestic flights could be shifted to long-distance rail transport relatively easily and with little additional expenditure of time.
In response to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the United States had imposed an import ban on oil from Russia. The federal government is against an energy embargo because of the high dependence on Russian supplies. Economics Minister Robert Habeck warned of serious damage to Germany. The share of Russian imports in crude oil imports to Germany is around 35 percent.
Source: Stern
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
