SEO Riders:
– Environmental advocates condemn EU commitment to buy US LNG as climate misstep.
– Deal risks locking Europe into decades of high-cost, high-emissions fossil fuel dependence.
– Critics warn US exporters may flout EU methane regulations under pressure from trade deal.
European and US campaigners have strongly criticised the newly announced US–EU trade framework—under which the EU pledged to purchase US$750 billion in American energy, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) over the next three years—in exchange for lowered tariffs on US imports to Europe. Andreas Sieber of 350.org labelled the agreement “deeply shortsighted,” arguing it risks cementing European dependence on expensive, high-emission gas, fueling further climate damage from floods and wildfires.
Additional concerns come from climate experts and civil society around the potential weakening of the EU’s methane emissions rules. Industry insiders and US exporters are reportedly lobbying to carve out methanol waivers in the agreement—despite uncertainty over US LNG’s capacity to comply with EU me Critics suggest the trade deal may prioritise energy geopolitics over climate integrity, potentially undermining both EU climate leadership and global decarbonisation efforts.
