Dhaka, April 20 -- Czechia has the infrastructure, reserves, and access to alternative suppliers to eliminate its Russian oil imports. Yet, three years into Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Czech Republic continued to delay this strategic shift, despite the availability of viable alternatives.

In 2024, Czechia imported 2.7 million tonnes of Russian crude oil, worth an estimated 1.5 billion euros ($1.6 billion), according to a recent analysis by the Center for the Study of Democracy. Although this is a 30 percent decrease in volume compared to 2023, the cut was not due to a proactive policy to phase out Russian crude but largely the result of three major disruptions to the Druzhba pipeline.

The completion of the Trans-Alpine ...