General Director of Russia's national nuclear energy corporation Rosatom, Mr. Alexey Likhachev, said that the way out of the European energy crisis lies in reconsidering the role of nuclear power.
Mr. Likhachev has just made a noteworthy statement when saying that the current energy crisis of the European Union (EU) is not a short-term consequence, but originates from "decades of wrong policies".
Speaking in an interview with RT, Mr. Likhachev emphasized that the US-Israel conflict with Iran is just a "catalyst" to reveal long-standing weaknesses in Europe's energy policy.
The disruption of transportation through the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on regional oil and gas infrastructure have caused energy prices to rise sharply, pushing the cost of living of EU citizens up.
According to the head of Rosatom, the biggest mistake of the EU lies in the excessive "simplification" approach to the energy transition process. He believes that promoting green energy without fully considering the stability of the system has put Europe in a vulnerable position.
In particular, he criticized the EU's abandonment of traditional gas and restrictions on nuclear power. "The unfounded rejection of gas, along with barriers to nuclear energy, has led to the current situation," he said.
Since 2022, the EU has stepped up reducing dependence on Russian gas, setting a goal to completely end imports by 2027. Instead, the bloc accelerated imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the global market and expanded investment in renewable energy.
However, the EU's nuclear policy is not consistent. Some countries such as Austria and Denmark have banned nuclear power for a long time, while Germany - the largest economy in the bloc - officially closed all nuclear power plants in 2023.
Conversely, many other countries such as France, Hungary or Finland are still heavily dependent on this power source. Rosatom is also currently cooperating with Hungary in nuclear projects.
In that context, Mr. Likhachev believes that the way out of the European energy crisis lies in "reconsidering the role of nuclear power" - an energy source that he assesses as stable, large-scale and low-emission.
The assessment from Russia was made when Europe is facing double pressure: Both ensuring energy security in the context of geopolitical instability and pursuing the goal of green transition.
