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Germany to be hit hard by embargo on Russian gas imposed now, says finance minister

Earlier, German authorities said they were ready to replace Russian gas supplies by 2024

BERLIN, May 2. /TASS/. Germany cannot embargo Russian gas right now as it will be hit harder than the Russian Federation in this case, Finance Minister Christian Lindner said in an interview broadcast by the Welt TV channel on Monday.

"I would like to explain to viewers why we cannot embargo gas right now. We should make sure that we keep economic strength. We should not unnecessarily limit this strength position for ourselves," he said, adding that if Germany abandons gas imports itself "it will hit hard itself, probably, even harder than" Russia.

Earlier, German authorities said they were ready to replace Russian gas supplies by 2024, while Russia’s coal and oil supplies might be abandoned as early as during this year.

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