European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and representatives of the Cypriot rotating presidency of the Council of the EU called for the full restoration of free navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, quoted by BTA.
The appeal was made during the debates in the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, dedicated to the crisis in the Middle East and its impact on the prices of energy carriers, fuels and supplies of artificial fertilizers.
Von der Leyen and Cypriot Deputy Minister for European Affairs Marilena Rauna also insisted on strict compliance with the ceasefire between the US and Iran, which has been in force since April 9. The EC President stressed that Iran should not acquire nuclear weapons or develop a ballistic missile program.
The Cypriot presidency also drew attention to the situation in Lebanon, where the tension between Israel and the pro-Iranian movement “Hezbollah“ remains a direct consequence of the wider regional crisis. Rauna called for full compliance with the ceasefire and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Lebanon.
The main emphasis in the speeches was on the impact of the conflict on energy prices and the state of the European economy.
“This is the second energy crisis in the last four years“, noted Ursula von der Leyen, recalling the turmoil after the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022. According to her, the European Union is currently paying billions of euros more for the same amounts of energy, which clearly shows how vulnerable the dependence on fossil fuels remains.
She pointed out that the European Commission has already taken a series of measures to limit the risk, emphasizing the need for member states to act in a coordinated manner and not compete with each other in purchasing natural gas.
Von der Leyen called on the union to gradually reduce its dependence on fossil fuels at the expense of renewable energy sources and nuclear energy. As a positive example, she pointed to Sweden, which provides almost all of its electricity from renewable sources and nuclear power plants and thus maintains lower electricity prices.
Marilena Rauna warned that the war in the Middle East is not a distant conflict, but a crisis in the immediate vicinity of Europe, which requires a common and unified European response.
According to her, there is no easy solution, but the EU's strategic autonomy is directly related to energy security. Therefore, according to her, both urgent measures against high energy prices and long-term policies to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels and fertilizers are needed.