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Exclusive-No appetite in EU for energy deals with Russia, Kallas says

By Thomson Reuters Mar 17, 2026 | 4:07 AM

BRUSSELS, March 17 (Reuters) – There is no appetite in the European Union to ​strike deals with ‌Russia on energy amid soaring prices, also not behind closed doors, EU foreign policy chief ‌Kaja ​Kallas said on ⁠Tuesday.

“I’ve been behind ⁠those closed doors and I don’t see this this appetite. And when we ​talk to Russia, of course, the most important ⁠thing is to ⁠first agree what ​we want to talk to ​them about,” Kallas said in ‌an interview with Reuters.

“Because if we just go back to ‘business as usual’, we ⁠will have more of this, more wars. We have seen this ⁠before. ‌So we have ⁠to be very vigilant ​and ‌not actually give Russia ​what ⁠they want, because their their appetite will only grow.”

(Reporting by Andrew Gray, writing by Bart Meijer, Editing by ​Dominique Vidalon)