Germany expects to be independent of Russian oil by summer's end

Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck said Germany has already reduced oil, coal and gas imports. Berlin has been under pressure to reduce its reliance on Russian oil since Moscow invaded Ukraine.

Germany's Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck said Sunday that he expects his country can be fully independent of Russian crude oil imports by the end of summer.

The Ministry of Economy and Climate said the goal was "realistic" in a tweet.

In a statement, Habeck said that Germany, the largest European economy, had already reduced its share of Russian energy imports to 12% for oil, 8% for coal and 35% for natural gas.

Ukraine and other countries, notably the Baltic states, have cut energy imports from Russia and put pressure on Germany to do the same.

What did Germany's economy and climate minister say?

Habeck said in the statement, "All these steps that we are taking require an enormous joint effort from all actors and they also mean costs that are felt by both the economy and consumers."

He added the steps being taken to wean Germany off Russian energy "are necessary if we no longer want to be blackmailed by Russia."

The German central bank has said cutting the country off from Russian oil completely could lead to higher inflation and a decline in the country's economic output of roughly 5%.

EU energy payments greasing the Russian war machine

European payments to Russia are worth billions of Euros and are credited with keeping Russia's economy going.

This week, the EU will consider an embargo on Russian oil. The move comes after a decision to ban Russian coal imports from August.

Currently, the EU pays Russia $850 million (€780 million) a day for oil and natural gas. Germany is one of the largest recipients of Russian energy.