Perplexed Jake Tapper Warns, ‘The Europeans Are Funding Both Sides’ of Ukraine War

CNN anchor Jake Tapper was perplexed on Monday by a report that showed European nations were spending more money on Russian oil than aid for Ukraine, remarking that they were essentially “funding both sides” of the war.

During an appearance on CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper, Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) criticized the European Union’s reliance on Russian energy.

“It’s so ironic. They’re still reliant on Russian oil and gas, moving it throughout Europe or moving it to other places and bringing it back into Europe,” he said. “So they’re essentially putting as much money into supporting Russia and not putting as much money into actually defending Ukraine, and then begging us to be the backstop for security. That comes to an end.”

Tapper replied, “Yeah, I actually saw a study from a European group that showed that Europeans were actually buying more Russian oil and gas than they were helping Ukraine in terms of the aid, so in some ways, the Europeans are funding both sides of this war.”

The report last month claimed that European Union member states had spent €21.9 billion on Russian oil and gas in 2024 – €3.2 billion more than the €18.7 billion the European Union gave to Ukraine in financial aid that same year.

President Donald Trump lashed out at European allies over the report on Monday, writing on Truth Social, “Europe has spent more money buying Russian Oil and Gas than they have spent on defending Ukraine —BY FAR!”

Watch above via CNN.