EU leaders struggle for common response to energy crisis

World

Published: 2022-10-07 14:33

Last Updated: 2024-03-28 21:20


EU leaders struggle for common response to energy crisis
EU leaders struggle for common response to energy crisis

EU leaders meeting in Prague on Friday looked to bridge divisions on how to tackle soaring energy prices as they grapple with the fallout from Russia's military operation in Ukraine, AFP reported.

President Volodymyr Zelensky was dialing in from Kyiv as the bloc looks to maintain its economic and military support for Ukraine and hold a tough line against Moscow.

EU leaders were also discussing how to better protect their critical infrastructure in the wake of leaks from the Russia-Europe Nord Stream gas pipelines that have been blamed on "sabotage".

But it was the sharp disagreements over how to tackle the energy crisis that were the major focus of attention as the 27 nations wrangled over the best plan to try to bring down prices.

Europe is facing an energy crunch as the price of electricity generation skyrockets because of a massive surge in gas prices caused by Russia turning off the taps.

Governments across the bloc are scrambling to lower the costs for their consumers, but they rely on different sources for their energy and are split over the solutions.

EU executive head Ursula von der Leyen is proposing a "roadmap" of measures to help ease the burden -- including potential moves to cap the price of gas.

However, there is no consensus on how any caps could work and leaders are not set to take a firm decision until a summit in Brussels later this month.

"Now, it is time to discuss how we can limit the peaks in the energy prices and the manipulation of energy prices by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin," von der Leyen told journalists.

"This will be the discussion about price caps, the question where to put them and how to put them."