Russia's weaponization of oil and gas exports to neuter Europe on Ukraine is backfiring badly

Anti-Russia protest in Germany
(Image credit: Yann Schreiber/AFP via Getty Images)

Russian President Vladimir Putin's ploy to use oil and gas exports as "a weapon of financial war" in its campaign to conquer Ukraine "is increasingly backfiring, threatening the core of Russia's beleaguered economy and curtailing its geopolitical influence," The Wall Street Journal reports.

Putin had calculated that cutting off natural gas to Europe, and especially Germany, would leave Europe's economy in shambles and its citizens freezing, weakening the continent's support for Ukraine. But "warm weather and ample supplies from other producers have derailed that effort so far," and European gas prices on Monday fell to levels not seen since September 2021, the Journal reports. "The Russian oil industry, meanwhile, is having trouble adapting to a European Union embargo and a U.S.-led price cap on its crude."

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.