Germany’s largest steel producer, Thyssenkrupp Steel, has spoken out against imports of Russian steel, warning that current EU policy in this area undermines domestic production while simultaneously financing Russia’s war machine, as reported by Agronews.
CEO Dennis Grimm stressed that while German industry is being forced to cut output and shed jobs, the EU continues to allow large-scale purchases of Russian metal products. “This situation is absurd,” he said, noting that the money flowing to Russia strengthens an economy fully engaged in the war against Ukraine.
According to the German Steel Federation, imports of Russian steel billets and semi-finished products into the EU rose to 3.56 million tonnes in 2025, compared with 3.26 million tonnes the previous year. The federation’s managing director, Kerstin Maria Rippel, highlighted that despite sanctions, Russian producers are still permitted to export significant volumes to Europe. She added that this causes severe harm to European steelmakers while directly benefiting the Kremlin, stressing that this loophole must be closed as soon as possible — either through additional sanctions or by imposing effective tariffs on Russian metal.
In the first half of 2025 alone, the EU imported 2.95 million tonnes of metallurgical products from Russia — primarily semi-finished steel and pig iron. Despite existing restrictions, this represented a 2.7% year-on-year increase, generating around 1.22 billion euros in revenue for Moscow.
