Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia's revenues from fossil fuel exports have surpassed EUR 675 billion. Many countries that plan to participate in the Peace Summit (G7, EU, Turkey) and who declined participation, like India or China, directly contributed to this revenue stream through purchases of Russian LNG, pipeline gas, crude oil and oil products. This financial support enables Russia to continue its brutal assault on Ukraine, including the country's energy infrastructure, which has devastating consequences for civilian populations, leaving thousands without electricity. The Summit is taking place in the heart of Europe in Switzerland, while the EU still remains heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels.

The Peace Summit is supposed to provide a platform for dialogue on ways towards a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace for Ukraine and Europe based on international law and promote a common understanding of a possible framework to reach this goal, including through concrete roadmaps that include energy security and environmental protection.

As Ukrainians and international civil society, we urge country leaders and participants of the Summit on Peace in Ukraine in Switzerland to adopt stronger, consolidated sanctions on Russia’s energy sector and strictly enforce them. This is crucial to countering Russia’s ongoing aggression in Ukraine and ensuring regional and world stability.

Ukraine is under relentless attack, while Russia is exploiting energy-related sanctions loopholes. Russian energy exports continue to fuel its war machine, undermining the effectiveness of current sanctions.

Stronger energy sanctions are essential for the following reasons:

1. Closing Loopholes: Existing sanctions allow Russian energy exports to penetrate global markets. Closing these loopholes is vital to cut off significant revenue streams for Russia.

2. Unified Global Approach: A fragmented sanctions regime weakens the overall impact. Unified, comprehensive sanctions by all nations will demonstrate global resolve and significantly hamper Russia's economy.

3. Economic Impact: The energy sector is a cornerstone of Russia’s economy. Targeting it directly with sanctions will exert substantial pressure on the Kremlin, hindering its ability to finance the war.

We propose the following measures:

1. Tightening the oil embargo and introducing enhanced enforcement measures, including prohibitions on importing oil products from Russian crude, and immediate sanctions on vessels violating price caps.
2. Comprehensive sanctions against Russian LNG exports, starting with a ban on transshipments in EU ports.
3. Peace Summit participants should intensify pressure on states of shadow fleet tanker holders, compelling them to take responsibility for vessels flying their flags. The build-up of shadow tankers should be prevented by restricting the sale of tankers, especially by EU/G7 entities, to operators who do not adhere to sanctions or the price cap policy and to Russian or undisclosed buyers.
4. Establish a robust international mechanism to monitor and enforce compliance with energy sanctions to ensure that all countries adhere to the sanctions regime and prevent circumvention.
5. Recognizing the urgent need for reconstruction in Ukraine, particularly in the wake of extensive damage to energy infrastructure, we call for increased support for sustainable, distributed, energy-efficient, renewable energy projects. These projects not only enhance energy security and resilience but also contribute to global climate goals and create high-quality jobs.

Addressing Russia’s aggression requires decisive action. By focusing on sanctions and enforcement in the energy sector, we can significantly weaken Russia’s ability to sustain its war efforts. We call on all summit participants to commit to these enhanced sanctions and stand united against Russian aggression. Concrete and explicit steps on the above issues should be reflected in the final Communiqué of the Summit on Peace in Ukraine.

Signatories:

Razom We Stand (Ukraine)

EKOenergy ecolabel (International)

Clean Air Action Group (Hungary)

NGO “DYC “DOBRO” (Ukraine)

NGO EKOLTAVA (Ukraine)

NGO Black Sea Women’s Club (Ukraine)

Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA)

Danube-Carpathian Programme (Ukraine)

NGO Social Initiative “City of the Sun”(Ukraine)

Leave it in the Ground Initiative, LINGO (Germany)

Center for Environmental Initiatives “Ecoaction” (Ukraine)

Crude Accountability (USA)

NGO “BAKHMAT” (Ukraine)

NGO “FLORA” (Ukraine)

Austausch e.V. (Germany-Ukraine)

NGO Ecoclub (Ukraine)

NGO Promote Ukraine (Belgium)

B4Ukraine Coalition (international)

Centre for Economic Strategy (Ukraine)

Center for Innovations Development (Ukraine)

BankTrack (Netherlands)

Texas Campaign for the Environment (USA)

Gulf South Fossil Finance Hub (USA)

Quercus - Associação Nacional de Conservação da Natureza (Portugal)

The Dekleptocracy Project (USA)

Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL)

Terra-1530 (Moldova)

Cooperation and Development Network Eastern Europe (CDN)

Rozviy, Feminist Climate Initiative (Ukraine)

Eurasian Wildlife and Peoples (USA)

DiXi Group (Ukraine)

Expert Forum (EFOR) (Romania)

Global Young Greens (GYG)

Center for Analytical Study and Countering Hybrid Threats (Ukraine)

NGO “Khmelnytskyi Energy Cluster” (Ukraine)

Fridays For Future Ukraine

Green Alternative (Georgia)

NGO Vitsche e.V. (Germany)

Urgewald (Germany)

Bond Beter Leefmilieu (Belgium)

PO “Grow Society”(Ukraine)

NGO Plato (Ukraine)

Climate Alliance (Switzerland)

NGO Ecosense (Ukraine)

Ecological News (Kherson, Ukraine)

Mariupol Zero Waste (Ukraine)

Students of Kyrgyzstan for a Green Economy, NGO (Kyrgyzstan)

POCACITO, post carbon cities of tomorrow (USA)

NGO “Zero Waste Lutsk” (Ukraine)

ARAYARA.org (Brazil)

NGO “Center for international cooperation and project implementation” (Ukraine)

Democracy in Action (Georgia)

Research-Intellectual Club “Dialogue of Generations” (Georgia)

CEE Bankwatch Network (Czechia)

UWEC Work Group (International)

NGO Kharkiv anticorruption center (Ukraine)

Public Association ‘Ecohome’ (Belarus)

Klíma ťa potrebuje (Slovakia)

NGO Sustainable Development Agency SYNERGY (Vinnytsia, Ukraine)

“People’s Power” (Narodovladdia) Party (Ukraine)

Greenpeace Ukraine

NGO SaveDnipro (Ukraine)

Association for International Affairs (AMO) in Prague

Green Network (Belarus)

Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting (Ukraine)

Andy Gheorghiu Consulting (Germany/International)

NGO Social Initiative “City of the Sun”