EU swaps Russian energy dependence for US reliance amid Nord Stream and Druzhba disputes

The European Union is replacing its dependence on Russian energy with reliance on the United States, as illustrated by disputes over the Druzhba oil pipeline through Ukraine and the aftermath of the Nord Stream sabotage. For decades, European companies benefited from low production costs thanks to cheap Russian oil and gas. That advantage has ended. The EU plans to stop importing LNG from Russia by end of 2023 and pipeline gas by 2027, a move Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hails as ending unilateral dependence. However, critics argue this merely shifts Europe's energy fate from Russian to American control. The US had long viewed Europe's cheap Russian energy as a strategic problem. The article suggests that Europe is now trapped in a US-led energy dependency, with both Trump and Zelenskyy able to exert pressure.