Ukraine crisis: Turnaround for energy supply and mobility?

It is difficult days like these that force us to rethink - and quickly.

In an interview with Welt am Sonntag, Transport Minister Volker Wissing of the FDP explained how mobility in Europe will change in the future. The war in Ukraine also plays a decisive role. We have summarised the conversation and looked beyond the horizon.

An energy turnaround has long seemed superfluous, especially since Russia invaded Ukraine. The problem: Europe is not really independent because of Russia's raw material exports, especially gas through the Nordstream 1 pipeline. The war must stop - no question about it. On the one hand, NATO is supplying weapons to Ukraine, on the other hand, the EU is buying oil and gas from Russia and thus co-financing the war. That is the sad truth.

A first step: recently, the USA announced an immediate import ban on Russian oil, as reported by the Tagesschau. FDP Transport Minister Volker Wissing tells Welt am Sonntag: "The invasion of another country within Europe forces us to fundamentally rethink many things". By this he also means mobility (of the future), which also depends on Russian raw materials. And we are already noticing this in our own wallets: not only have fuel prices risen to record levels; diesel is even more expensive than petrol in some places.