Menendez, Risch Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Promote European Energy Security

The Responding to the Energy Security Crisis in Ukraine and Europe (RESCUE) Act of 2023 will address Ukraine’s energy security needs while helping it reconstruct and modernize its energy infrastructure

WASHINGTON – Last week, U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced landmark legislation to help bolster U.S. investment into Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and boost Eastern European energy security in the wake of Russia’s illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The Responding to the Energy Security Crisis in Ukraine and Europe (RESCUE) Act of 2023 will address Ukraine’s urgent fuel needs while helping it reconstruct and modernize its energy infrastructure. It will also provide investment and technical assistance across Eastern and Southeastern Europe to reduce regional reliance on Russian energy resources.

“Russia’s wanton invasion has not only taken countless Ukrainian lives and attempted to destroy Ukraine’s economy, it has destroyed more than half of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and exposed the challenges many of our Eastern European partners and allies face as we work together to weaken Russia’s ability to weaponize energy resources,” said Chairman Menendez. “I am proud of the United States’ response thus far, and we need to do more with our European partners as we support medium and long-term energy security for Ukraine and beyond. We need to help Ukraine with emergency fuel supplies, support their efforts to build back energy infrastructure in a way that is more modern and transparent, and foster U.S. investment into Eastern and Southeastern European countries to help reduce their dependency on Russian oil and gas.”

“Since before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, Russia has used energy as a weapon to pursue its geopolitical objectives. Even today, Russia prioritizes Ukraine’s energy infrastructure as a target due to its critical importance,” said Ranking Member Risch. “Ukraine’s energy industry and infrastructure will be a pillar of the reconstruction efforts after the war. It is crucial that we have a strategy that rebuilds, reforms, and integrates Ukraine’s energy sector in support of a more secure and united Europe. The RESCUE Act will help us do just that and reduce Russia’s ability to use energy as a weapon against our allies.”

The bill authorizes the appropriation of $1.88 billion to be used by the Department of State and the U.S. Agency for International Development, including $1.1 billion to support Ukraine’s energy sector reconstruction, security, and modernization. It authorizes no less than $500 million to reduce Eastern Europe’s dependencies on Russian energy supplies.

Provisions in the RESCUE Act would also:

• Increase the region’s energy interconnectivity
• Improve diversification of energy sources
• Address human health, and nuclear safety concerns in Ukraine
• Incorporate adoption of modern standards of good governance, while also prioritizing U.S. manufacturing and sourcing
• Prioritize countries with energy security risks
• Mitigate wartime environmental and nuclear hazards
• Leverage international support
• Establish oversight mechanisms