Europe Is Seeking New Energy Sources

Will Iran war finish the deindustrialization of Western Europe?

The 2026 Iran war threatens to accelerate the deindustrialization of Western Europe by unleashing a massive energy shock, with Brent crude surging toward 120 dollars per barrel and natural gas prices rising roughly 60%. This conflict disrupts essential supply chains, fuels inflation, and burdens energy-intensive industries (such as steel and chemicals), threatening a severe stagflationary crisis.

 

Key Impacts on Western European Industry:

 

    Energy Price Surge: The potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz—through which 20% of global oil flows—drastically increases energy costs, crippling industrial competitiveness.

    Energy-Intensive Losses: Industries like steel, petrochemicals, and construction are facing severe pressures due to skyrocketing input costs.

    Stagflation Crisis: High energy prices are driving up input costs for businesses to their highest level in over three years, while concurrently slowing economic growth, leading to a classic stagflationary scenario.

    Supply Chain Disruptions: The conflict has caused significant delays in shipping and supplier deliveries.

 

    Limited Policy Options: Unlike the 2022 Ukraine crisis, European governments have less fiscal room to maneuver due to high existing debt levels.

 

While Europe is less reliant on oil for electricity generation than in the 1970s, the energy-intensive manufacturing sector remains highly vulnerable. A prolonged war, rather than a short-term conflict, is seen as the primary risk for irreversible damage to European industry.

 

 

“For the second time in four years, Europe is hunting for new natural-gas supplies after a war exposed its vulnerability to energy geopolitics.

 

The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has halted Qatar's production of liquefied natural gas, trapping 20% of global supplies of the fuel behind the Strait of Hormuz and sending prices surging. Damage to Qatari LNG plants from Iranian strikes could take years to repair.

 

That is a big problem for Europe, which has relied heavily on LNG to replace Russian pipeline gas since the events in Ukraine began in 2022.

 

Italy is especially vulnerable. It shut down its nuclear-power plants long ago, has invested relatively little in renewables and relies more on gas for power generation than any other major European country.

 

"It's a serious emergency," said Davide Tabarelli, head of the Italian energy research institute Nomisma Energia. "Italy is Europe's weak link when it comes to energy because it is so dependent on energy imports."

 

The Gulf conflict recently sent Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to Algeria to firm up gas supplies. Italy was Europe's largest importer of LNG from Qatar; Algeria is Italy's biggest supplier of gas overall, through a pipeline that crosses the Mediterranean.

 

Spain's foreign minister traveled to Algiers the following day to also seek assurances that Algerian gas would continue to flow.

 

Europe's main alternative to Qatari gas has been U.S. exports of LNG.

 

The war in Iran has shown how energy security remains one of Europe's biggest strategic weaknesses, four years into sanctions on Russia in the wake of events in Ukraine.

 

The European Union lacks the vast oil and gas resources of the U.S., Russia and the Middle East.

 

Renewable energy has helped absorb some of the shock in countries such as Spain that have added wind and solar power to their grids. But the continent still needs gas for much of its power generation, heating and industry.

 

When events in Ukraine started, Italy was one of the biggest buyers of Russian gas. The sanctions on Russia changed that. Italy's then-prime minister, Mario Draghi, traveled to Algeria to negotiate deals that allowed the North African country to replace Russia as Italy's primary gas supplier. Italian energy company Eni accelerated drilling projects in Algeria's gas fields in the Sahara.

 

Most of the gas flowed through the Transmed pipeline, which runs from Algeria through Tunisia to Italy.

 

Algeria's exports to Italy surged to more than 23 billion cubic meters in 2022, 2023 and 2024, or more than a third of Italy's annual consumption.

 

There are limits to what Algeria can deliver.

 

The country also faces rising domestic demand, as well as problems with aging gas infrastructure that have slowed production.

 

Meloni said Italy would invest in shale gas projects and offshore exploration in Algeria. But that will take time.

 

"The only durable response is to end our dependence on imported fossil fuels," said Christophe Grudler, a centrist member of the European Parliament.” [1]

 

The problem is, that the real world doesn’t work this way, not according to Mr. Grudler’s ideas.

 

1. World News: Europe Is Seeking New Energy Sources. Dalton, Matthew; Stancati, Margherita.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 30 Mar 2026: A9.  

Pasaulio naujienos: Rusija didina paramą Iranui --- Maskva bando išgelbėti tai, kas liko iš mažėjančio pasaulinių partnerysčių tinklo

„Rusija tapo viena iš pirmųjų Irano karo nugalėtojų, nes kylančios naftos kainos paskatino jos ekonomiką, o Trumpo administracija sušvelnino Rusijos naftos apribojimus. Tačiau ilgalaikėje perspektyvoje konfliktas kelia daug didesnę grėsmę jos pasaulinėms ambicijoms.

 

Pastarosiomis savaitėmis Rusija padidino paramą Iranui, artimiausiam savo partneriui Artimuosiuose Rytuose, teikdama palydovinius vaizdus ir dronų technologijas, kad padėtų Iranui taikytis į JAV pajėgas regione.

 

Maskva iš dalies bando išgelbėti tai, kas liko iš mažėjančio jos partnerysčių tinklo, kuris kadaise pavertė ją antra pagal dydį ginklų eksportuotoja pasaulyje po JAV, rėmė šalis nuo Artimųjų Rytų iki Lotynų Amerikos ir suteikė patikimumo prezidento Vladimiro Putino požiūriui į Rusiją kaip į didžiąją valstybę.

 

Rusija „mokosi, ką reiškia, kai Jungtinės Valstijos veikia visiškai nevaržomai“, – sakė Hanna Notte, Jameso Martino neplatinimo studijų centro Eurazijos direktorė.

 

Į Sausio mėnesį JAV pajėgos įsiveržė į Venesuelą ir užgrobė prezidentą Nicolas Maduro, taip įtvirtindamos JAV dominavimą šalyje, kuri buvo patikima Rusijos ginklų pirkėja ir šimtų milijonų dolerių vertės Rusijos investicijų į naftos sektorių taikiniu. Prezidentas Trumpas užsiminė, kad kitas jo sąraše gali būti Kubos režimo nuvertimas.

 

Išpuolis prieš Iraną kelia grėsmę ilgalaikei Maskvos strategijai palaikyti draugiškų šalių ir sukarintų grupuočių partnerystę pietiniame flange. Buvęs jos partneris Sirijoje, buvęs prezidentas Basharas al Assadas, pabėgęs iš savo šalies, sėdi Maskvoje.

 

Irano režimas yra pagrindinis kovotojų, tokių kaip Libano „Hezbollah“, tinklo, kuris yra pagrindinis iššūkis JAV ir Izraelio dominavimui regione, ramstis.

 

Rusija, remdamasi savo patirtimi Ukrainoje, konsultuoja iraniečius, teikdama jiems taktinius nurodymus, kiek dronų reikėtų naudoti smūgiams ir iš kokio aukščio jie turėtų smogti, pranešė „The Wall Street Journal“.

 

Manoma, kad Rusijos patarimai ir informacija apie taikinius padėjo Iranui smogti JAV radarų sistemoms. regione.

 

Potencialus Irano režimo išlikimas suteiktų Rusijai galimybę išlaikyti tvirtą poziciją Artimuosiuose Rytuose. Tai taip pat suteiktų Maskvai galimybę parodyti, kad ji gali padėti savo partneriams atremti JAV kariuomenę.

 

Be to, Maskva siekė panaudoti savo paramą Iranui kaip derybų priemonę su Vašingtonu. Kremliaus derybų dėl Ukrainos pasiuntinys JAV specialiesiems pasiuntiniams Steve'ui Witkoffui ir Jaredui Kushneriui sakė, kad Rusija nustos teikti taikinių informaciją Iranui, jei JAV tą patį padarys su Ukraina.

 

Anksčiau per antrąją Trumpo kadenciją Rusija, regis, nenorėjo tiesiogiai konfrontuoti su JAV, nes stengėsi, kad Trumpo administracija iš esmės liktų nuošalyje nuo įvykių Ukrainoje.

 

Tačiau Maskva vis labiau reiškė nusivylimą, nes jos interesus buldozeriu nustelbė Trumpo užsienio politika.

 

JAV pajėgos užėmė ir konfiskavo kelis su Rusija susijusius naftos tanklaivius, įskaitant vieną, kurį, pasak JAV pareigūno, turėjo lydėti Rusijos povandeninis laivas ir kiti karinio jūrų laivyno ištekliai. Šio tanklaivio, dabar žinomo... kaip „Marinera“, įvyko nepaisant Rusijos užsienio reikalų ministerijos įspėjimo leisti jam laisvai plaukti.

 

Toliau, sausumos neturinčių karinių režimų juostoje palei pietinį Sacharos galą – Malyje, Burkina Fase ir Nigeryje – Rusijos samdiniai ir karinė pagalba nesugebėjo sulaikyti džihadistų grupuočių, kurios apsupo Malio sostinę ir išstūmė Burkina Faso kariuomenę iš didžiosios kaimo vietovės dalies.

 

Rusija daugiausia laikėsi nuošalyje, nes Malio ir Nigerio kariniai valdytojai tyliai atnaujino ryšius su Trumpo administracija, kuri aptarė saugumo pagalbą.

 

2024 m. Putinas pažadėjo „visišką paramą“ savo Afrikos sąjungininkams. Per beveik dvejus metus nuo to laiko Burkina Fasas ir Malis prarado pozicijas.

 

Trumpas netgi žengė į regionus, kurie istoriškai priklausė Rusijos įtakos sferai.

 

Praėjusiais metais jis pakvietė Armėnijos prezidentą Nikolą Pašinjaną ir Azerbaidžano prezidentą Ilhamą Alijevą į Baltuosius rūmus, kur bandė išspręsti įtampą tarp buvusių sovietinių respublikų. 2023 m. Azerbaidžanas pradėjo puolimą, perėmęs kontrolę... Kalnų Karabacho teritorija atgauta iš etninės armėnų vyriausybės, o Rusijos taikdariai nesikišo.

 

Baltųjų rūmų derybos buvo vienas pirmųjų JAV prezidento bandymų kištis į keblius regiono klausimus.

 

„Kalbant apie Pietų Kaukazą, atrodo, kad Trumpas sąmoningai bando pergudrauti rusus“, – sakė vyresnysis politologas Samuelis Charapas.“ [1]

 

Rusijos naftos tanklaivis „Anatoly Kolodkin“ į Kubos Matanzaso uostą atplaukė pirmadienį, 2026 m. kovo 30 d.

 

Siuntai buvo leista tęsti gabenimą po to, kai JAV prezidentas Donaldas Trumpas signalizavo apie staigų jo administracijos įvestos de facto naftos blokados salai panaikinimą.

 

Pagrindinės siuntos detalės

 

Laivas: „Anatoly Kolodkin“, kuriam šiuo metu taikomos JAV, ES ir JK sankcijos.

 

Krovinys: Maždaug 100 000 metrinių tonų (maždaug 730 000 barelių) žalios naftos.

 

Kodėl tanklaivis įplaukė

 

Tanklaivio atvykimas yra atsakas į kelis veiksnius:

 

Humanitarinė krizė: Kuba išgyvena didžiausią energetikos ir ekonomikos krizę nuo Šaltojo karo laikų. Sala tris mėnesius negavo naftos tanklaivio, todėl visoje saloje nutrūko elektros tiekimas ir labai trūksta degalų ligoninėms bei transportui. JAV politikos pokytis: Nepaisant neseniai JAV iždo departamento paskelbto draudimo tiekti rusišką naftą Kubai, prezidentas Trumpas sekmadienį pareiškė, kad jis „neturi problemų“ dėl šio tiekimo, nes Kubos žmonės „turi išgyventi“.

 

Geopolitinė strategija: Rusija šį siuntinį apibūdina kaip „humanitarinę pagalbą“, skirtą ilgalaikei sąjungininkei paremti. Analitikai teigia, kad Maskva taip pat naudojasi netikėtomis pajamomis iš aukštų naftos kainų, kurias lėmė tebesitęsiantis karas Irane, kad išlaikytų savo strateginę įtaką Karibuose po sąjungininkų Venesueloje žlugimo.

 

Konflikto vengimas: Stebėtojai pastebėjo, kad tanklaivio blokavimas jėga būtų sukėlęs tiesioginės karinės eskalacijos su Rusija riziką didelio pasaulinio įtempimo metu.

 

 

1. World News: Russia Is Stepping Up Its Support of Iran --- Moscow is trying to salvage what is left of a shrinking web of global partnerships. Grove, Thomas.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 30 Mar 2026: A8. 

World News: Russia Is Stepping Up Its Support of Iran --- Moscow is trying to salvage what is left of a shrinking web of global partnerships

“Russia has emerged as one of the early winners in the Iran war, as surging oil prices have given its economy a boost and the Trump administration has eased restrictions on Russian oil. But over the longer term, the conflict poses a much bigger threat to its global ambitions.

 

In recent weeks, Russia has stepped up its support for Iran, its closest partner in the Middle East, providing satellite imagery and drone technology to help Iran target U.S. forces in the region.

 

Moscow is in part trying to salvage what is left of its shrinking web of partnerships that once made it the world's second-largest arms exporter behind the U.S., a backer of countries from the Middle East to Latin America and lent credibility to President Vladimir Putin's view of Russia as a great power.

 

Russia is "learning what it means when the United States acts completely unrestrained," said Hanna Notte, director for Eurasia at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

 

In January, U.S. forces swept into Venezuela and grabbed President Nicolas Maduro, asserting U.S. dominance over a country that had been a reliable buyer of Russian arms and a destination for hundreds of millions of dollars in Russian investments in its oil sector. President Trump has suggested that toppling the Cuban regime might be next on his list.

 

The attack on Iran poses a threat to Moscow's long-held strategy of maintaining a partnership of friendly countries and paramilitary groups on its southern flank. Its onetime partner in Syria, former President Bashar al-Assad, is sitting in Moscow after fleeing his country.

 

The Iranian regime is the linchpin in a network of militias, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, which serve as the main challenge to U.S. and Israeli dominance in the region.

 

Russia has been advising the Iranians based on its experience in Ukraine, giving them tactical guidance on how many drones should be used in strikes and from which altitudes they should strike, The Wall Street Journal has reported.

 

Russia's advice and targeting information is believed to have aided Iran in strikes on U.S. radar systems in the region.

 

The potential survival of the Iranian regime would give Russia a chance to maintain a toehold in the Middle East. It would also give Moscow a chance to show it is capable of helping its partners fend off the U.S. military.

 

In addition, Moscow has sought to use its support for Iran as a bargaining chip with Washington. The Kremlin's envoy for negotiations on Ukraine told the U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner that Russia would stop providing targeting information for Iran if the U.S. did the same with Ukraine.

 

Earlier in Trump's second term, Russia appeared reluctant to confront the U.S. directly as it tried to keep the Trump administration largely on the sidelines of the events in Ukraine.

 

But Moscow has increasingly expressed frustration as its interests have been bulldozed by Trump's foreign policies.

 

U.S. forces have boarded and seized several oil tankers linked to Russia, including one that a U.S. official said was to be escorted by a Russian submarine and other naval assets. The seizure of that tanker, now known as the Marinera, occurred despite the warning of the Russian Foreign Ministry to let it travel freely.

 

Farther afield, in a band of landlocked military regimes along the southern end of the Sahara -- Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger -- Russian mercenaries and military aid have proven unable to hold back jihadist groups that have encircled Mali's capital and expelled Burkina Faso's military from much of the countryside.

 

Russia has mostly stood back as military rulers in Mali and Niger quietly reactivated contact with the Trump administration, which has discussed security assistance.

 

In 2024, Putin promised "total support" to his African allies. In the nearly two years since, Burkina Faso and Mali have lost ground.

 

Trump has even trod into regions that have historically fallen under Russia's sphere of influence.

 

Last year, he invited Armenian President Nikol Pashinyan and Azeri President Ilham Aliyev to the White House, where he tried to resolve tensions between the former Soviet republics. In 2023, Azerbaijan started an offensive that took control of the Nagorno-Karabakh territory back from an ethnic Armenian government, while Russian peacekeepers didn't intervene.

 

The White House talks was one of the first attempts by a U.S. president to wade into the thorny issues of the region.

 

"When it comes to the South Caucasus, it almost seems like Trump is deliberately tweaking the Russians," said Samuel Charap, a senior political scientist.” [1]

 

The Russian oil tanker Anatoly Kolodkin arrived at the Cuban port of Matanzas on Monday, March 30, 2026.

The shipment was allowed to proceed after U.S. President Donald Trump signaled a sudden reversal of a de facto oil blockade his administration had imposed on the island.

 

Key Details of the Shipment

 

    Vessel: The Anatoly Kolodkin, which is currently under sanctions by the U.S., EU, and UK.

    Cargo: Approximately 100,000 metric tons (roughly 730,000 barrels) of crude oil.

   

 

Why the Tanker Went Through

 

The arrival of the tanker is a response to several factors:

 

    Humanitarian Crisis: Cuba is facing its worst energy and economic crisis since the Cold War. The island has not received an oil tanker in three months, leading to island-wide blackouts and a critical shortage of fuel for hospitals and transportation.

    U.S. Policy Shift: Despite a recent U.S. Treasury Department ban on Russian oil deliveries to Cuba, President Trump stated on Sunday that he had "no problem" with the delivery because the Cuban people "have to survive".

    Geopolitical Strategy: Russia describes the shipment as "humanitarian aid" to support a long-term ally. Analysts suggest Moscow is also using the windfall from high oil prices—driven by the ongoing war in Iran—to maintain its strategic influence in the Caribbean following the fall of allies in Venezuela.

    Avoidance of Conflict: Observers noted that blocking the tanker by force would have risked a direct military escalation with Russia at a time of high global tension.

 

 

1. World News: Russia Is Stepping Up Its Support of Iran --- Moscow is trying to salvage what is left of a shrinking web of global partnerships. Grove, Thomas.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 30 Mar 2026: A8.