Europe Fires Back as U.S. Lifts Russian Oil Sanctions Amid Price Hikes

Politicians from the black‑red coalition sharply criticised the United States’ decision to temporarily ease trade restrictions on Russian oil.
The CDU foreign‑policy minister Roderich Kiesewetter told the “Rheinische Post” that the U.S. move benefits Russia in three ways: first, it raises Russian revenues that go straight into financing the war of aggression; second, it weakens the sanctions regime, allowing Russia to diversify its purchaser base; third, it serves as a form of cognitive warfare to advance the split between the United States and Europe. He added that the easing of sanctions contradicts “Europe’s core security interests because it serves the aggressor Russia” and warned that Europeans should be self‑critical. “We have many more options to support Ukraine and to halt Russia’s shadow fleet, yet we are not fully exploiting them” he said.
Criticism also came from the SPD. Foreign‑policy spokesperson Adis Ahmetovic told the “Rheinische Post” that Trump’s decision helps the Kremlin better finance its “war of aggression against Ukraine”. He argued that two false wars feed each other because both leaders focus only on their own interests, and he said this underscores why European and global middle powers must unite in a common alliance.
The U.S. government’s decision to allow the sale of Russian crude amid sharply rising energy prices has likewise attracted sharp opposition criticism. Left party leader Ines Schwerdtner described the United States’ solidarity with Ukraine as “hypocritical”. In an interview with the “Rheinische Post”, she accused the U.S. of a double standard: “On one hand, Russia’s war of aggression is rightly condemned; on the other hand, Moscow is suddenly allowed to sell oil again as soon as prices rise”.
She went on to say that this policy “sends a fatal false signal: violations of international law appear to be relativised when they become economically inconvenient”. Schwerdtner called for ending dependence on oil and gas, arguing that those who want permanently stable energy prices must expand renewable energies and curb the market power of large energy conglomerates.