Germany's Scholz: Putin Using Energy as a Weapon

21.10.2022, 15:59 voanews.com

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Thursday Russian President Vladimir Putin is using energy as weapon, but his tactics are only bringing Western allies closer together in their support of Ukraine. Scholz made the comments to the German parliament ahead of a European Union energy summit, the second meeting of the 27-member bloc in two weeks as they seek to lower energy prices, and work around divisions over how exactly to do so. In his comments to parliament, Scholz said Russian’s efforts to choke off gas supplies to Europe, while conducting what he called “scorched Earth tactics” against Ukraine – targeting energy infrastructure ahead of the cold winter months – will back-fire and “only strengthen the determination and staying power of Ukraine and its partners.”