How Climate Extremism Has Promoted the Russia-Ukraine War

As President Donald Trump’s Alaska summit brought the Russia-Ukraine conflict back into focus this week, we can’t forget the role that Democrats’ climate hysteria played in dragging out this conflict.

Recently, it was revealed that California Gov. Gavin Newsom has been purchasing Russian oil through a resale chain involving India and Turkey in defiance of a Biden administration import ban Russian oil and Trump administration sanctions on Russian energy exports, and exposing one of many facets of Newsom’s failed leadership.

Many Americans, unfamiliar with Newsom’s particular brand of dirty politics, may wonder how a U.S. governor could so openly defy American sanctions, Trump’s mandate, and the will of the American people to halt funding for the Russia-Ukraine war? Ending the conflict, the killing, and its endless financial drain on the U.S. was a key reason for Trump’s election in November 2024, as he consistently championed peace and an end to global wars during his campaign.

But Californians unfortunately know exactly how Newsom and other climate extremists fostered this unsavory and illicit resale industry where Russian oil thrives. By prematurely halting oil purchases from allied nations and curbing domestic energy production without having viable energy alternatives available, climate extremists in Europe and North America created a demand for oil from hostile regimes like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela.

Their rushed bans on friendly energy sources and domestic production led to energy shortages when their plans for renewable sources, like wind power, fell short. Rather than admitting their errors and reversing course, these leaders have grown increasingly reliant on the bloody trade of sanctioned oil, empowering adversarial regimes—some of which gained influence due to global climate hysteria propagated by the EU, U.N., and the U.S. under President Joe Biden.

In contrast, during Trump’s first term, his focus on American energy independence set a model for allies, contributing to a period of relative global peace with no new wars initiated.

European allies who have been diligently chastising America for not sending enough billions of dollars to Ukraine to “stop Putin’s aggression” are themselves complicit. Throughout the war, they have been purchasing large amounts of sanctioned Russian oil, skirting their own sanctions and even participating in illicit oil trades.

Only recently after Trump negotiated a trade deal with the EU, have they made any firm commitment to finding new sources for energy. Trump’s trade deal with the EU included a $750 billion commitment to buy American energy, directly addressing the EU’s hypocrisy on this issue.

The Europeans often claim they were forced into this position due to Russia’s wartime tactics, yet they fail to see there would be no need for sanctions, no discussion about how to effectively enforce sanctions, and no discussion about whose naval resources will be used to stop illicit oil trades—or even the need for secondary sanctions—if the climate extremists hadn’t breathed life into this market in the first place.

As if this behavior from our allies wasn’t bad enough, now we find out we even have a U.S. governor who is undermining Trump’s peace efforts by importing oil that funds the abduction of innocent Ukrainian children, contributes to the destruction of tens of thousands of lives each month on the battlefield, and contributes to global instability.

American taxpayers on both sides of the aisle have soundly rejected funding this conflict further, and most are relieved to see Trump pursuing action toward making peace rather than the performative theater we got under the Biden administration.

And the kicker is, we have more than enough resources right in California to ensure that we never need to participate in such an ugly industry. There is no popular support nor economic necessity for this situation to exist. This situation created by Newsom should disgust all Americans and serve as a reminder that he is as incapable of leadership as Biden was.

Now that we have seen the carnage from the Russia-Ukraine war, the global climate hysteria that created the conditions for this war should serve as reason enough for the U.S. to defund anyone who promotes conflict in this way. This includes the U.N. as it pushes faulty data and fearmongering over global warming at the expense of its core duty to promote peace and stability.

This is unacceptable, and these extremists who forced an agenda on the world when they clearly weren’t knowledgeable enough on the subject to understand the limits of their own technology—or the consequences of their actions—should be held accountable. We can start with Gavin Newsom, by rejecting his failed policies and ensuring his influence does not extend beyond California.

I wanted to give the governor a chance to respond to this, so I sent an email and left a message at Newsom’s press office requesting a comment. I have not heard back as of publication time.

Climate extremists in Europe and North America, by prematurely halting domestic energy production and banning purchases from allies without viable alternatives, have driven reliance on oil from adversarial regimes like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela. This has not only destabilized energy markets but also empowered these regimes, contributing to global conflicts.

It is up to Americans once again to bring back rationality and common sense to the world by supporting the energy dominance policies of the Trump administration and defunding anyone who is promoting conflict.

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