France Faces Backlash For Supporting Ukraine While Relying On Russian Energy Despite EU Sanctions

France has come under public criticism for backing Ukraine and supporting the European Union’s (EU) sanctions on Russia while still being heavily reliant on Moscow for vital energy supplies to service its precarious economy.

Élysée’s criticism comes after it emerged as the EU’s second-largest importer of Russian Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in July 2025.

According to a report published in mid-August by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), the EU was the largest buyer, purchasing 51 per cent of Russia’s LNG, followed by China (21 per cent) and Japan (18 per cent). France, according to CREA, was the second-largest buyer within the EU, importing Russian fossil fuels worth €239 million, all of which was LNG.

CREA, however, noted that the gas imported via France does not necessarily mean it was consumed there, citing a study that indicates some Russian LNG entering France through the Dunkerque terminal was delivered to Germany.

The five largest EU importers of Russian fossil fuels, which include Hungary (largest – €485mn), France (second-largest – €239mn), Slovakia (third-largest – €169mn), Belgium (fourth-largest – €102mn), and Spain (fifth-largest – €66mn), paid a total of €1.1 billion.

Due to its need for energy security, about 67 per cent of these imports to the EU were natural gas delivered either by pipeline or as LNG, with the rest primarily comprising crude oil, which is transported to Hungary and Slovakia via the southern branch of the Druzhba pipeline under an EU exemption, according to CREA.

France, on the other hand, has been drawn to criticism for its vocal support for Ukraine in protest of its invasion by Russia, an invasion to which Russia blamed the EU and US for after the 2014 Maidan uprising in Kyiv and described by Moscow as a Western-led regime change operation.

Meanwhile, as France’s presence in the Sahel States, such as Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, came to an inglorious end in 2023, its energy reliance on Russia adds a layer of scrutiny to its foreign policy and energy strategy amid sanctions from the EU bloc. Once a dominant influence in the region, France has seen its sway diminish as countries like Mali and Burkina Faso turn toward Russia for security and economic partnerships.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

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