German Economy and Energy Minister Robert Habeck told ARD TV: "If we immediately cut off Russian energy imports, it will now lead to a shortage of supply, even no more supply in Germany."
The Green Party politics predict " mass unemployment, poverty, no energy for heating and no gas" if Germany stops importing Russian oil and gas.
Few other Western economies depend on Russian energy like Germany: 55% of natural gas, 52% coal and 34% of Germany's oil are imported from Russia.
Mr. Habeck said the German government is aiming to abandon Russian coal in the summer and gradually phase out Russian oil by the end of this year, but a short-term ban on Russian gas could make Germany difficult.
With coal, oil and even gas, we are step by step in the process of self-reliance, said the former Green Party leader. But we cant do it right away. It was bitter but we have to admit that we cannot do that yet."
The US, which imported about 8% of its crude oil demand from Russia in 2021, announced a ban on Russian oil, which took effect immediately last week, while the UK announced that it would gradually phase out Russian oil imports by the end of this year.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has set out a number of red lines in his foreign policy, agreed to provide weapons of mass destruction to Ukraine, supported the removal of Russia from the SWIFT payment system and the freezing of the completed but yet un operated Nord Stream 2 pipeline under the Baltic Sea.
But the center-left leader said he was "slowing hands" on the ban on Russian energy. "There is no other way to ensure energy supply to Europe for heating, transportation, power generation and production at the moment," Scholz said last week.
Depending on the predictions of different researchers and economic institutes, the immediate cut off of Russian gas supplies could reduce Germany's GDP to 0.1 or at most 5.2%.
In an open letter, several prominent German scientists, writers and activists called on the government to take a bold step in reducing its dependence on energy in Russia. According to The Guardian, former Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Alliance has proposed closing the Nord Stream 1 pipeline while allowing gas imports via other routes.
Meanwhile, the left-wing Free German government is trying to fill its gas reserves, which were supplied by Russian energy companies last year and were largely exhausted by the end of the winter.
In the process of finding alternative energy sources, it is difficult to propose short-term solutions. Simplifying the process for new solar and wind power farms is one of the promises in the agreement of the coalition government, but the construction alone will take a long time.
The construction of ports for liquefied natural gas (LNG), as Germany has already said, will take towns in Brunsbüttel und Wilhelmshaven, typically at least five years.
Meanwhile, Europe has been under pressure to impose additional sanctions against Russia in response to the ongoing military campaign in Ukraine. Last week, the European Commission said it would gradually eliminate dependence on Russian oil, gas and coal by 2030, not ban imports like the US and UK. EU officials say member states must deal with rising energy prices and supplement gas reserves before the winter.
The EU has previously imposed extensive restrictions on Russian banks and trade. Most European countries have closed their airspace to flights linked to Russia, and Moscow has responded in the same way.
RT reported that Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said last week that the Russian energy sector is ready for sanctions, while the government is looking to reduce the impact.
