Russia’s gas cuts risk fracturing the unity of the European Union this winter as strained budgets and supply issues limit the bloc’s capacity to cope with a sudden, severe energy shortage.
EU nations are seeking to sustain their common response to what they label President Vladimir Putin’s blackmail five months into the invasion of Ukraine. But their discussions are starting to echo the tensions that divided northern and southern member states in the aftermath of the financial crisis.
Member states agreed on Tuesday to cut their demand for gas by 15% over the next eight months, with a severe disruption in supplies from Russia potentially making that a binding goal. The compromise deal came after southern countries in particular pushed back against an initial proposal from the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm.
