The EU summit taking place today in Versailles is discussing, among other things, how an energy supply without reliance on Russian resources could be achieved. Around 40% of gas supplies currently come from Russia, which is to be drastically reduced - around two-thirds less gas is to be procured from Russia this year.
Instead, the energy is to come from the USA and Qatar. But this would pose a new problem for German imperialism in particular. If they were to do without Russian gas, they would make themselves more dependent on Yankee imperialism. Although German imperialism is heavily dependent on Yankee imperialism, it is increasingly striving for independence from it - so dependence on US energy resources would have exactly the opposite effect. In order to counteract this further dependence, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, had already proposed the "European Green Deal" at the end of 2019, which aims to greatly reduce the EU's greenhouse emissions. In the process, the introduction or expansion of renewable energies within the EU is to be further promoted. Von der Leyen said that this would be "a strategic investment in our independence". To further justify this project, she added that it would be "good for our industry and good for our planet". Concerns that this would increase energy prices even further are left aside. While southern European countries such as Italy, Spain and Greece are already calling for a cap on energy prices at the European level, these are being dismissed by the EU's leading countries, which see this as too little motivation to switch to renewable energies.
Olaf Scholz wants to go to the top.
This shows how the interests of German imperialism in particular, and to some extent French imperialism, take precedence over those of the poorer European countries. Because, at least in the FRG, the masses have not yet taken to the streets in a militant way because they can no longer afford the electricity and heating bills and the petrol for the way to work. The interests of German imperialism will become even more obvious when it comes to the question of further sanctions against Russia. Chancellor Scholz had already said very clearly at the beginning that Germany would not support any sanctions affecting the Russian energy sector.
So German imperialism continues to fight for the role of an imperialist superpower and knows that for this it has to leave the open conflict with Russia to the USA. It goes on to show how its interests are being offloaded onto the people, who will have to face even higher energy prices for the "strategic investment in our independence".
