Russia's invasion of Ukraine is enormously increasing the risks to Europe's energy and climate security. The close cooperation of European countries with Russia over the past three decades, even as the Kremlin has undermined Europe's energy and national security, is now completely unjustified. The most effective way to stop the Kremlin's aggression is for Europe to ban oil and gas imports from Russia, accompanied by urgent measures to protect vulnerable consumers. Such a decision would bring the Russian economy to its knees for between 8 and 11 months, depending on the price of crude oil on world markets. In the long term, a complete abandonment of fossil fuels is the most sustainable way to improve energy and climate security, and would also deal an irreversible blow to the Kremlin's economic and political influence in Europe.

These are some of the main conclusions of an analysis by CSD, which presents a roadmap to counter the most serious risks to European energy and climate security at an international conference organised jointly with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation on March 28th in Sofia. In addition to experts from CSD, the discussion also included Melanie Kenderdine, Director, Energy Futures Initiative, former Advisor to the Secretary of Energy and Director of the Office of Energy Policy and System Analysis at the US Department of Energy, Borislav Sandov, Deputy Prime Minister for Climate Policies and Minister of Environment and Water, Daniel Lorer, Minister of Innovation and Growth, Radoslav Rybarski, Chairman of the Energy Committee of the National Assembly, Ilian Vassilev, Ambassador of Bulgaria to Russia from 2001 to 2005, and Atanas Georgiev, Dean of the Faculty of Economics at Sofia University "Kliment Ohridski".