Ukraine war: UN chief Guterres slams energy firms for churning higher profits amid crisis

As the prices of fuel reached an unprecedented high amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slammed energy companies and appealed to utilise the money for a "better cause". The top UN official warned countries to face special taxes if their tendency to gain more profit would not come to an end. According to Guterres, it was "immoral" for firms to be profiting from the unprecedented crisis, BBC reported on Thursday. Notably, ever since Moscow started its "special military operation" against Ukraine, energy prices have been skyrocketing. 

According to the UK-based broadcaster, four of the biggest energy firms - Exxon, Chevron, Shell and TotalEnergies - earned nearly $51bn in the most recent quarter. It claimed the figures are almost double of what they made in the same period last year. 
"This grotesque greed is punishing the poorest and most vulnerable people while destroying our only common home. I urge all governments to tax these excessive profits, and use the funds to support the most vulnerable people through these difficult times," the top UN official stressed.

Guterres suggests policymakers refrain from imposing unnecessary taxes

Further, he suggested that policymakers focus on reducing costs for Americans by boosting the energy supply and said that imposing new taxes on the industry will do the exact opposite and only discourage investment. According to Guterres, high energy prices would have wide-ranging consequences as they impact both family and government. 

Amid the unprecedented soaring of oil prices, US President Joe Biden announced the release of oil from global oil reserves earlier in the first week of June. While announcing the measure, he said that it would help the oil prices to go down, which have been continuously increasing since the onset of Russia's invasion. 

Earlier in March, Biden ordered a similar release of oil from US's reserves in an effort to bring down soaring fuel costs. At that time, he had claimed that the release would help in controlling the fuel price and inflation simultaneously. However, the claims did not solve the energy crisis in the US or the whole world. Notably, the prices of crude oil have been increasing since the onset of the war. The situation further deteriorated in European countries after the European Union announced their plan to minimise its dependency on Russian energy. 

(Image: AP)