Europe’s Gas Games: Feeding Putin While Pretending to Fight Him

 

Europe hides behind America’s shadow, pretending helplessness, while funding the very tyrant they condemn. Putin thrives because Europe prefers comfort over courage. Europe must realize one important fact: When you feed a crocodile in hopes it will eat you last, you are still on the menu.

Europe loves to strike poses of moral outrage when Russia bombs another Ukrainian building, but when it comes time to actually act, the outrage melts away into a comfortable shrug. I see a continent that has mastered the art of condemning Moscow with one hand while signing checks to Gazprom with the other. The facts are plain: Russian missiles tore into Kyiv, hitting a government building in the heart of Ukraine. Yet instead of Europe turning off the cash faucet that fuels Putin’s war machine, it continues to buy Russian liquefied natural gas at record highs. That isn’t resistance; that’s complicity dressed up in diplomatic suits.

For all the speeches about sanctions, what Europe has really done is create a price cap that works like a coupon at a discount store. Russia still sells oil, just at a cheaper price. And in case anyone doubts it, Russia is still selling plenty of oil, plenty of gas, and still earning billions. The North Stream pipeline may have been blown up, but liquefied natural gas exports remain strong—$8 billion a year strong. Eight billion dollars is pocket change in Silicon Valley, but it’s lifeblood in Moscow. While Ukraine bleeds, Europe’s energy addiction keeps Putin’s economy alive.

This is the game Europe plays: talking about standing with Ukraine while standing in line for Russian gas. They scold Putin in the daytime and pay him by night. It is like trying to starve a wolf while throwing bones at its feet. If Europe were truly serious, it would cut off every drop of Russian LNG, not tomorrow, not in the distant future, but now. Eight billion dollars may not sound like much compared to America’s trillion-dollar tech fantasies, but for Russia, it is the money that buys the bullets, the drones, and the bombs that keep falling on Kyiv.

Some will say that Europe cannot afford to cut off Russian gas because winter looms and their people need heat. But let’s not pretend this is about survival. This is about comfort, about keeping prices low enough so voters don’t complain. In that selfish calculation, the lives of Ukrainians become expendable. Europe prefers to buy itself warmth while Ukraine freezes under missile fire. A house built on lies will not stand when the storm comes. Europe pretends to defend freedom while paying the tyrant who is destroying it.

I do not buy the argument that Europe cannot survive without America to lead. Europe is not some helpless orphan waiting for Uncle Sam to rescue it. The infrastructure is already there. American LNG companies stand ready to ship gas across the Atlantic. Venture Global, Cheniere, and others can ramp up production, and Europe itself has the resources to develop alternatives. The only thing missing is political will. But political will is the one resource Europe seems unwilling to produce. Instead, leaders drag their feet, hold conferences, issue statements, and whisper about flexibility, all while Putin watches and laughs.

Let’s face it: Europe is not being sincere. They want Ukraine to fight Russia to the last Ukrainian soldier, while they hedge their bets, hoping the war will magically end before their gas bills rise. But wars do not end by magic. Wars end when the aggressor is humiliated, when the flow of money is cut off, when the arsenal is emptied, and when defeat becomes undeniable. Europe has the power to do this. They can starve Putin’s war chest overnight. But they will not, because to them, $8 billion in Russian gas is worth more than the sovereignty of Ukraine.

The danger is not just Ukraine’s. If Europe thinks it can keep playing games, it must realize that today it is Kyiv under fire, but tomorrow it could be London, Warsaw, Vilnius, or Berlin. Putin’s appetite will not be satisfied with Ukraine alone. When you feed a crocodile in hopes it will eat you last, you are still on the menu. The lesson should be clear: every euro Europe pays Russia today is a down payment on its own future destruction.

I say it bluntly: Europe does not need America’s help to humiliate Putin. They do not need Washington lectures or White House press releases. All they need to do is shut off the gas taps and mean it. They have the power to bankrupt Russia’s economy in months. They have the means to crush Putin’s leverage. The only thing they lack is courage. Courage, unfortunately, cannot be imported on LNG tankers.

So long as Europe keeps pretending, Putin keeps bombing. So long as Europe chooses comfort over principle, the missiles will keep flying. Ukraine is the testing ground of Europe’s sincerity, and so far, Europe is failing the test. If Europe does not act now, the sound of Russian drones over Kyiv will one day echo over Europe’s own capitals. And when that day comes, they will have no one to blame but themselves.

The clock is ticking. Europe can either cut off the cash and cripple Putin’s war, or it can keep paying for its own funeral. The choice is theirs, but the consequences will be everyone’s. I have no sympathy left for leaders who wring their hands while wiring money to Moscow. Either you help Ukraine win, or you prepare to lose yourself. That is the fact, and no amount of diplomatic flexibility can bend it into something else.