Le Pen says US diesel export ban would have ‘incalculable’ impact on French citizens
A U.S. plan to ban diesel exports would have “incalculable” consequences for French people, warned Marine Le Pen, the far-right candidate in the French presidential elections, at the POLITICO Playbook Paris Live event Thursday.
The surge in fuel prices “hits all French people really hard” and is “their main concern” right now, Le Pen added.
The Trump Administration is floating a potential ban on exports of diesel for 90 days in a bid to bring down energy prices, POLITICO reported on Wednesday. While the European Commission says it is pressuring the White House to drop the idea, some European authorities have downplayed the threats despite warnings it could have devastating consequences on the bloc’s fuel supply.
The EU currently imports more than half of its diesel from America and imports have increased in recent months to make up for those lost due to the conflict in the Middle East. Prices and supply have been further affected by strikes on Russian oil refineries.
Le Pen said the government should adopt her proposal to cut VAT on fuel as prices at the pump surge across the country and stoke fears of a new Yellow Jackets-style protest movement.
“The role of a political leader is precisely to ensure that the French people do not have to take to the streets to secure a decision that is both long-awaited and absolutely necessary,” she said, noting that other European countries like Spain and Germany had similarly decided to cut taxes on fuel given how the conflict in the Middle East has led to worldwide oil price spikes.
